Mass Wars Episode 1
by Fantasymaker76
Summary: It is an age of tensions in the galaxy, two galactic governments compete with each other over who has control of the galaxy, the Citadel Council and the Republic of Allied Species. With the discovery of an ancient Prothean Beacon on the Republic planet Eden Prime, both governments see it as a chance to build bridges between them and send a joint contrusted ship to investigate.
1. Timeline:

**Timeline of the Alliance Republic:**

**2025: **The question of are the Humans alone in the Galaxy in answered at last. The answer of no as humanity discovered a new species. But it was the Aliens who arrived on Earth and contacted Humanity. When they first arrived, there was worldwide panic that the Earth was about to be attacked by a much advanced species but quickly, the threat ended when the Aliens made peaceful contact with the Humans. These Aliens looked almost human only having blue skin and red eyes. They called themselves the Chiss and had arrived after discovering an old probe sent by humans during the Space Race. The Chiss were peaceful but saw that Humanity was heading into extinction due to overpopulation on one planet and so the Chiss decided to help the Humans advance their technology in order to expand into space to save their people from extinction.

**2035: **After 10 year, the Space Age is back and the humans finally manage to send the first man to Mars thanks to Chiss technology. Resources are sent towards Mars and the Humans and Chiss work together to help make Mars more liveable.

**2040: **Thanks to the Chiss, Mars' atmosphere develops to protect people from UV radiation from the sun and also allows humans to breath on Mars without space suits. Earth begins to send the first colonists to Mars.

**2050: **Mars begins to flourish thanks to the many colonists that arrive. Farming is made easy since Water begins to flow on Mars making the planet more like Earth. While the Planet still has its red colour, rivers flow all over Mars making the Colony an opportunity for people to live on.

**2070: **Humanity's population continues to get bigger and even Mars hasn't enough resources to sustain the population so humanity begins looking even further into the Solar System. Venus and Mercury are unfit for habitation as Venus' clouds are too much even for Chiss Technology and Mars is too close for the sun. But Energy stations are constructed in Mercury's orbit to generate Solar Power. Earth's Moon has a small colony develop but not as large as Mars and is more of a military outpost and Cargo port since there were no resources on the Moon. The other planets have more luck. The moons of Mars Phobos and Deimos are mineral rich and small mining colonies are established. On Saturn, the largest moon Titan is made habitable by Chiss technology and colonists start settling on the Moon and fuel production for ships becomes the main trade of Titan thanks to the Methane Lakes. The other moons of Saturn are used to help provide resources to Titan's colony.

**2080: **The moons of Jupiter start to be colonised with Callisto and Ganymede becoming Colonies while Europa becomes a major water production for fresh water to the colonies. Io has a scientific research base established to study the many volcanoes on the moon.

**2100: **Humanity had now expanded towards the edges of the Solar System with the settlers heading towards Uranus and Neptune. On Uranus, the moons of Ariel, Oberon and Titania become settlements while Neptune only has Triton as a settlement. The only planets in the Solar System not be touched are Pluto and Eris. In the Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter, companies begin mining Asteroids while the dwarf planet Ceres become a major trading outpost for these companies.

**2120: **Despite having nearly 100 years of peaceful colonisation, soon settlers start to begin wanting to be their own government instead of being controlled by Earth. On Mars this leads to a far right group known as the Settlement Defence Front leading a military coup against the Governor of Mars and take military control of the planet. Earth begins to send warships and troops to retake control of the colony.

**2122: **After 2 years of fighting, the Charon Accords are signed and Mars becomes an independent power.

**2130: **Despite the hopes of the Charon Accords bringing peace, SDF becomes more ambitious and builds up its own army and fleet which panics Earth leaders who begin to establish a more firm control over their colonies. The Leaders of Earth unite to form one government and take better control of their colonies. But they are forced to give control of Uranus to the SDF to avoid war.

**2132: **Earth's public calls for war when word reaches them of SDF murdering colonists on Uranus and tensions rise when SDF take military control of Titan.

**2134: **Despite people wanting war, Earth decides not to risk all out war which could devastate humanity. However War starts when SDF launches a surprise attack on Earth which cripples Earth's fleet and takes control of the Moon. Several Ships survive the attack and fight back against SDF across the Solar System.

**2135: **The War ends with Earth's victory and the death of most of SDF leadership. The war leaves massive losses on humanity but the Chiss help them recover. The war makes it clear that humanity must be united now and so the government is reformed so all colonies elect someone to represent them. The Chiss now begin to help humanity develop hyperdrives which can take them towards other systems for habitation.

**2137: **War veteran Nora Salter leads the first group of colonists towards the world outside the Solar System. They arrive at the Arcturus system and begin exploring the new system. They discover the Gas Giants are good sources for fuel towards the Hyperdrives. The colonists eventually settle on the Planet Benning which is a located Euler system not far from Arctutus.

**2140: **The Age of Exploration begins with funding from wealthy people from Earth to start exploring the Stars. Warnings from the Chiss make sure that the exploration vessels are defended by an escort but not too large so they don't provoke a war with any species that they discover. An important part of these talks were Protocol Droids that the Chiss had helped develop which could help translate different species' languages.

**2150: **A human exploration fleet makes first contact with a new species. On the planet known as Ryloth, they come into contact with a species known as the Twi'leks. These aliens were similar to the humans but had a range of different skin tones and prehensile appendages that sprout from the back of their head and went down their back. The Chiss and humans establish contact and begin to help them achieve space travel. Humans decided to help any pre-spaceflight species they could find in order to build up alliances.

**2160: **Another new species is discovered on the planet Shili known as the Togrutas who look just like the Twi'leks only they had multiple colours on one body rather than just one. These species were more advanced so helping them achieve spaceflight was quick.

**2170: **On the planet Miral, the near human species known as the Mirialans. These people are seen as near human since they look like humans and so they quickly achieve spaceflight.

**2171: **More colonists begin leaving the Solar System to settle on newly discovered Garden Worlds so the use of machines to make planets liveable is not used as much but the technology is kept safe in case it is needed. On Mars, a survey team in the South Pole discovers a small data cache which is discovered to have been from an Ancient Space faring species known as the Protheans which disappeared 50,000 years ago. They have some technology but it is considered inferior to what has already been created. But they soon discover something known as the Mass Relays which allowed the Protheans to travel across the Galaxy.

**2172: **One of these Mass Relays is discovered to be encased in ice at Pluto's moon Charon. This worries humanity as there is a gateway into their system. Governments vote to destroy it but the Chiss fear that because it contains so much energy, it could create a supernova. The Chiss are eventually able to harvest the energy contain in the Mass Relay on a fuel ship. The Relay is then destroyed and humanity decided to destroy any other relay then find in their territory.

**2175: **A group of scientists research the energy that was harvested from the relay but an accident during an experiment exposes many people in Singapore to dust form element known as Element Zero which is used as fuel for spaceships. The fuel doesn't work for large warships but was good enough to be used for fighters.

**2180: **With Humanities power expanding and new Colonies being formed, Humanity decided to construct a large space station in the Arcturus System to act as their alliance parliament. Each major colony would have a representative along with colonies founded by other aliens that were part of the Alliance such as the Twi'leks and Togrutas. Another new species discovered were the Rodians of the planet Rodia, a reptilian race with green skin or sometimes yellow. Their home planet was a swamp but they lived in domed cities, they jumped at the chance to find new homes and quickly became members of the Alliance so that they could find better places to live.

**2200: **A joint exploration mission discovers another species on the jungle planet Kashyyyk known as the Wookies. These aliens are full of hair and are expert warriors. However they were unable to speak any other language other than their own so Protocol Droids became important. The Wookies join the Alliance and become respected warriors among the Alliance races. Also, a second accident with Element Zero occurs during the harvesting of a Mass Relay exposing more people to Element Zero.

**2201: **Arcturus Station is complete and become the headquarters of the Alliance. Every home planet of the species along with major colonies has a seat in the Parliament. These Colonies included Benning, Eden Prime, Elysium, Horizon, Luna, Mars and Terra Nova along with the planet Kiros which was founded by the Togrutas. Many of the Colonies had mixed populations with a mixture of different species but there were many more colonies through the area that the Alliance controlled which were still quite small. Many of these smaller colonies were either just small mining colonies on Asteroids or gas mining on large Gas Giants which were too small to be important except for the raw material they extract. Others were farming colonies which had not grown yet like Eden Prime had done which was a large farming colony. Also, many children who had been exposed to element zero begin to develop telekinetic abilities but the Alliance has no idea how to help these people.

**2201: **The Alliance is official now known the Republic of Allied Species to show unity and every race is treated the same. This new galactic government quickly makes contact with another species known as the Besalisks on the planet known as Ojom. In the same year, explores discover a creature known as Yoda on the planet Dagobah. This small green skinned creature finally helps the Republic understand the telekinetic powers that people have been developing which is known as the Force. An order is founded on Arcturus Station known as the Jedi Order which helps children who develop these powers train.

**2200-300: **The next hundred or so years results in the age of discovery as funding from Republic investors results in the discovery of a number of new species. These include Zabrak from the planet Iridonia, the Iktotchi from the moon Ikotch the Kel Dor from the planet Dorin and the Sullustans from the planet Sullust. This age also allows the Republic to control a large amount of territory and colonise many worlds for different purposes weather for farming or for mining and although some groups start small independent colonies, most are eventually absorbed into the Republic weather peaceful or by force.

**2251-65: **The Republic Wars against Slavery begin after The Republic comes into contact with the Zygerrian Slave Empire. After first contact in 2245 with both groups, slavers soon begin to raid the outer parts of the Republic which include colonies and even Ryloth. Eventually the Senate vote for war and soon sends their fleets against the Slave ships which soon result in full scale war between the Republic and the Zygerrian Empire. The War ends in 2265 with the Invasion of Zygerian in Republic victory. The Republic forces a harsh treaty on Zygerria which forces them to abandon Slavery and much of their territory becomes Republic Territory with new colonies and free people who accept the Republic.

**2270: **The Zygerrian revolt forces the Republic to withdraw from Zygerria and the Zygerrian People accept Slavery again but their power never reaches as far as their home system. The Senate vote that Zygerria is not worth their trouble if they leave the Republic alone and so the Republic withdraws from the region but steps up defence of the outer areas of the Republic. The Republic also forms an Alliance with the Bothan Species who help spies on the remaining Slavers and become agents of the Republic although they are not classed as a Republic Species since their Homeworld is not in Republic controlled territory.

**2310: **The Republic of Allied Species now controls a large amount of space and they end up coming into contact with a group known as the Trade Federation. This Trade Federation includes a group of Species who have hit a hard time due to them being exiled from a group known as the Citadel. The Trade Federation members arrive on Arcturus Station and warn the Senate of the Citadel and how the Trade Federation was exiled from their space after they refuse to shut down their battledroids which the Citadel considered AI. As a result, the Trade Federation which were led by the Neimoidian species were forced to start funding criminal activity to prevent collapse. After the Senate makes an offer, the Trade Federation joins Republic Space and become major investors.

**2320: **A Trade Federation exploration fleet discovers the planet of Mon Cala and the two major species on the planet, the Mon Calamari and the Quarren. The two species are currently at war but the Republic managed to help them negotiate a ceasefire and both species join the Republic by 2325.

**2332:** Despite having years of peace, the first major internal struggle begins when the Mandalorian Wars begin. The Republic colony of Mandalore is home to a warrior people who love to fight and clans would often fight each other which over time has devastated the once proud garden world. The wars begin when a extreme group of Mandalorian warriors known as Death Watch decided to declare independence and follow their own code and attacked nearby colonies. This resulted in the Republic being forced to declare war against one of their own colonies.

**2335: **Other colonies in the Mandalore system such as Kalevala and Concordia join the revolt and the revolt is hard for the Republic to fight as the Mandalorians are expert warriors and fight not for resources but for the thrill of the fight. Fighting becomes extreme and there is talk in the Senate about letting Mandalore leave the Republic but that idea is shot down as the Mandalorians would carry on raiding the Republic and the Chancellor is forced to resign.

**2338: **The Republic begins to gain the upper hand and capture Kalevala and the one of the Mandalorian leaders, Tal Merrik is killed. Mandalore also descends into civil war between the extreme fighters and loyalist to the Republic led by Clan Wren.

**2340: **The Republic captire Concordia and begin to land forces on Mandalore and capture Sundari, Mandalore's capital.

**2343: **The war carries on for three more years and the conspirator Almec is captured and sentenced to life imprisonment. Death Watch and their leader, Pre Vizsla along with Clan Saxon refuses to surrender and they manage to flee Mandalore to the Terminus Systems where they become a mercenary company that is known to be more like raiders. The war is over but Mandalore remains under military control.

**2350: **While helping to dismantle a Mass Relay near the planet Shannxi, a Republic Exploration fleet is suddenly attacked and forced to retreat. Soon an entire fleet attacks the colony and while the small defensive fleet puts up a massive fight, they are soon forced to retreat and the occupation of Shanxi begins. Right after the retreat, the Trade Federation recognised the attacking ship's design and warns that it is the Citadel species known as the Turians. Unwilling to allow this Citadel to take one of their colonies, the Senate dispatches a massive fleet to relieve Shanxi.

**2351: **On the Planet Shanxi, the republic citizens start a Guerrilla war against the occupying race known as the Turians which make life difficult and the Turians never have full control as their weapons are unable to deal with the Republic's shields on their tanks due to different technology. Also the Republic Second Fleet quickly arrive and defeat the occupying spaceships which leaves the army with now air cover and the army is eventually forced to surrender.

**2352: **Following the recapture of Shanxi, the Republic and the Turians make preparations for war after a Turian reinforcement fleet is also defeated. This catches the attention of the Citadel which eventually forces both species to agree to a ceasefire.

**2353: **Representatives of both the Citadel Council and Alliance meet up to have talks with each other for the first time. While the Republic already knew of the Citadel, the Citadel did not know of the Republic. While the Citadel attempts to convince the Senate to join the Republic, the Senate refuses as they heard about the Citadel being bigots and pushing the lower species around. While both galactic governments agree to trade technology since the Citadel cannot travel without the Mass Relays, it still starts an era known as the Cold War between the Citadel and the Republic.

**2355:** Because of the Cold War, the Republic allows Mandalore to have control over their planet again and the colonies regain their seat in the Senate led by Satine Kryze, a pacifist who tries to help Mandalore move on from their warlike past but Mandalorian warriors are still prized in the Republic military.

**2360: **Despite the Cold War, many people from both Citadel and Republic Species settle on each other's colonies which must obey the rules of the area where the colony is. This causes some issues as some Citadel Species such as the Volus find the Republic more appealing than the Citadel as the Volus have been a Citadel Species for hundreds of years and still have not got a seat on the council. This causes a fear in the Citadel that the Volus may choose to leave the Citadel entirely and join the Republic. There are other problems as the Republic refuse to cut down the size of their fleet which they say is important for defence. This starts an arms race which results in more Dreadnoughts being built by the Asari and Turians.

**2365: **A Republic exploration ship suffers a malfunction and is forced to crash land on a moon in unexplored space known as Pandora. The crew which includes a group of students discover a new species known as the Na'vi which are very primitive and are unwilling to leave their heritage behind. As a result the Republic decides to leave Pandora alone even though the planet is rich in minerals. Although a science base is constructed to study the wildlife and nature of the moon which is kept small.

**2369:** The Cold War starts to cause problems for a Citadel Species known as the Batarians since the Batarians claim an area of space known as the Skyllian Verge is theirs which causes tensions since the Republic has several major colonies in the Verge and the Citadel is doing nothing to stop the Republic from expanding

**2370: **The first major crisis in Galactic peace happens. Batarian Slavers attack the Republic colony of Mindoir resulting in many colonists being captured or killed. The Republic demands the return of their colonists and while the Batarians deny involvement, Republic intelligence discovers messages between the Slavers and the Batarian leadership proving their involvement. The crisis sparks into clashes between the Batarian and Republic navies and nearly sparks into all out war. The Council eventually forces the Batarians to release the colonists but the treatment of these captured colonists angers the Republic and many of them don't see the Citadel as doing anything about the Batarians leading to strong anti-Citadel feelings in the Republic.

**2371: **In protest of the Citadel refusing to stop Republic Expansion, the Batarians close their embassy and become a rogue state. With the Batarians funding pirate raids onto Republic territory, more funding is directed towards defence and the defence fleet of many colonies are expanded to help deal with these pirate raids.

**2373: **Batarian funded pirates attack the colony of Elysium starting the Skyllian Blitz but the attack is repelled and several Batarian officers are captured in the Battle. This time, the crisis begins the Verge War between the Batarians and Republic with attacks on colonies on both sides. On the joined human and Batarian colony of Anhur, rebels fight against the government which is pro slavery and the rebellion spreads throughout the Amun System. The Citadel declares neutrality in the war but uses spies to see how the Republic fights their wars

**2374: **A surprise attack by the Batarians destroys the pride of the Republic fleet, the Dreadnought RSV Nick Reyes named after a war hero from the Settlement Defence Front War. The Nick Reyes puts up a big fight against a Batarian Dreadnought known as the Bria named after the moon where the Prothean ruins were discovered for the Batarians and manages to destroy several Batarian cruisers during the fight. But eventually, the Nick Reyes is destroyed with few surviving since the Batarians destroyed the escape pods as well. But instead of demoralizing the Republic like the Batarians hoped, the Republic sends out the powerful Seventh Fleet led by Chiss Admiral Thrawn to avenge the loss and the Bria is ambushed at a Batarian outpost and Thrawn destroys most of the fleet and destroys Batarian power in the area which cripples their ability to lead attacks on the Republic.

**2375: **Despite the victory of avenging the RSV Nick Reyes, the war is still not going too well for the Republic as several Batarian raids on outer colonies have been successful and the Republic has been unable to destroy the Pirate bases. So in order to show that the Republic is not going to be pushed around, the Republic military orders a small bombing run against the Batarian homeworld as a show of strength. Known as the Dutch Raid after the bomber commander leader Jon 'Dutch' Vander, a squadron of newly developed bombers secretly manage to sneak through Hyperspace and bomb the Batarian homeworld of Khar'shan. While the damage done is minor and gains criticism from the Citadel, the Raid is a propaganda victory against the Batarians and provokes fear in the Batarians.

Later in the same year in hopes of destroying the Republic navy in retaliation, the Batarians attack the Republic planet of Corellia, home of the major Republic shipyards. While the attack was a surprise, Corellia had so many ships and pilots due to the shipyards and were able to hold the Batarians off until the Republic Second Fleet led by Admiral Yularen arrived and destroyed the Batarian fleet including a number of secretly built Batarian Dreadnoughts which cripples the Batarian navy. The disaster soon starts talks of rebellion by the lower cast Batarians resulting in the Batarians going into Civil War.

**2376: **As a result of the Disaster at Corellia, the Batarians hatch a new plan after discovering the location of the moon of Pandora. Since the moon is lightly defended and has the resources that the Batarians need to rebuild their fleet, a small group of the Batarian navy attacks Pandora with plans of enslaving the Na'vi to rebuild their fleet. While the attack is a surprise and successful at first, the Na'vi soon unite and fight back and with the help of Pandora's wildlife, the Batarian ground forces are defeated and the navy is defeated by a small task force of the Republic navy.

**2377: **The Republic Colony of Akuze vanishes and the team send to find them are attacked by creatures known as Thresher Maws which kill most of the team. But the Verge War enters a new stage when the Batarians convince a number of Warlords from the Terminus systems to attack the Republic. The attack comes by surprise and results in the occupation of several Republic worlds including Sullust, Ryloth, Onderon, Kashyyyk, Kiros and Naboo. As a result, several Republic Fleets are sent to reclaim the captured planets. But the Warlords only have limited success in occupation and as a result, most of the captured worlds are quickly recaptured by the end of the year. Only the Warlords on Ryloth are able to hold back the Republic. But the lower casts of the Batarians start to rise up and this prevents the Batarians from carrying on their attacks on the Republic as they have to sort things out at home. The Zygerrian Empire attempt to rebuild their Empire and get vengeance against the Republic by invading Kiros and enslaving thousands of peaceful colonists.

**2378: **Republic Spies are able to locate the kidnapped colonists of Kiros in the Kadavo System and a Republic Mission is able to rescue the Slaves and the clash between the Republic and Zygerria forces Zygerria to back down due to their navy still not fully rebuilt.

**2379: **The Republic is finally able to retake control of Ryloth and is now able to focus their attention on dealing with the Batarians. The Republic also strikes a deal with the Pirate Queen Aria T'Loak who agrees to keep the local criminal gangs in line in exchange for support for her rule over her small empire. Aria basically becomes the sole ruler of her own piece of the galaxy with a number of small colonies under her rule. This also helps prevent any further attacks on the Republic from the Terminus systems

**2380: **The Republic attacks the main Slaver base on the moon of Torfan. The battle is long and bloody but the Slavers are defeated and the threat to Republic colonies is curtailed. The Republic and Batarians are still official at war with each other but the Batarian navy is crippled and the Civil War soon ends with several colonies led by a former Batarian military leader declaring independence from the Hegemony and declares the Batarian Commonwealth. The Hegemony is powerless to stop them and is forced to allow it. The Commonwealth signs a peace treaty with the Republic which secretly gives the Commonwealth supplies to help rebuild for fears of the Hegemony trying to take them over again. The Commonwealth declares Slavery outlawed in their territory. On Anhur, the abolitionist force wins and is left in power and starts to rebuild the colony.

**2382: **The Republic intelligence begins to investigate pro-human group known as Cerberus.

**2383: **In an attempt to build bridges between the Citadel and Republic, the Turians help the Alliance develop of an experiment stealth ship. Shortly after completion, the Republic Colony of Eden Prime uncovers a Prothean Beacon and both the Republic and Citadel jump at the chance to study it and the find is seen as a chance to improve relations between the 2 Galactic Governments.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: **Well this is my timetable for my Mass Effect story which I have been planning. This story is a crossover with Star Wars by having Star Wars races as well as some Star Wars characters that we will see later on. 2009 Avatar is also in the story but will play a bigger role later on. The story of Call of Duty Infinity War is also part of this stories history. I will be having more Star Wars races in the story but they won't come along until the Mass Effect 2 storyline. This timeline is so that readers get an understanding of this story world but the next chapter will also provide more information on each race as well as the military as I will be using Star Wars military in this story as well. I also plan to give some of the Mass Effect Species such as the Salarians and the Batarians a bigger role since I didn't feel like they had a big enough role in the games so while the story will follow the Mass Effect storyline, there will be changes throughout the story


	2. Codex

**Codex: The Republic:**

**Republic of Allied Species: **When the Chiss made contact with Earth in 2025, an agreement was made between them which eventually made the Humans a space faring race. After the humans united after a brutal war, the Chiss introduced them to Hyper Drives which allowed them to travel at FTL without the need for the Mass Relays. As the Humans began exploring more of space, they soon discovered other new species and just like the Chiss helped them, the two allied helped these newly discovered species achieve space flight. Every discovered species has a seat on the Republic Senate located at Arcturus Station which passes laws agreed in Republic Space. Every species governs themselves at their home planet and many major colonies are able to pass their own laws but overall defence is up to the Senate who decides on the size of the military. The Military of the Republic is large which has worried the Citadel Council who fear that the Republic could use this fleet to conquer the rest of the galaxy but the only major war the Republic has been involved is fighting the Slaver and Criminal Gangs who attack their territory.

**-The Humans: **The humans were one of the founders of the Republic and are known for being curious people with a sense of adventure and exploration. Their home planet of Earth was suffering from pollution and over population until the Chiss helped them develop technology to clean Earth and find new places to settle.

-**The Chiss: **The other major founders of the Republic were the Chiss and are one of the most power species in the Republic. The Chiss are very similar to humans only having blue skin and red eyes. Their home planet of Csilla was the home of the Chiss Ascendancy which has the largest territory in Republic Space and before the formation of the Republic, they were a very closed off people who had little to do with the galaxy. Since the formation of the Republic, the Chiss donated much of their defence fleet to help form the overall Republic fleet and many of their old military leaders became teachers in Republic military schools to teach new military leaders. Many of the Chiss military leaders do not use their full name as their names are often long and difficult to pronounce so many shorten them to something simple.

**-The Twi'leks: **The Twi'leks are natives of the planet Ryloth. The planet Ryloth had varied terrain which was filled with jungles, mesas, valleys and volcanoes and due to this dangerous terrain, Twi'leks often lived in caves underground. Many Twi'leks lived in small clans but since their discovery by the Alliance, they have since united and many Twi'leks left Ryloth to search for a better life. Despite having their own language, many Twi'leks are able to speak the same language with the Republic without the need for Protocol Droids but many still keep their language as part of their culture. Ryloth is one of the major planets to have a Republic fleet since Ryloth is located near the Terminus systems and pirates often attack the planet and take Twi'leks as slaves. This fleet has many Twi'leks serving in the fleet to protect their homeland from these Slavers and these slave attacks and the protection make the Twi'leks one of the most loyal members of the Republic.

**-The Togrutas: **One of the more advanced species in terms of art in the Republic are the Togrutas. Natives of the planet Shili many Togrutas have colourful skin which blends in with Shili's colourful grasslands. Many Togrutas are peaceful and so now many join the military but many are artists and are known to create fabulous pieces of artwork. But the Togrutas peaceful ways and colourful skin makes them targets by Slavers who see them as exotic and quite valuable. Many Togruta also left Shili to find a better life and many Togruta live on the colony of Kiros, a colony dedicated to art and beauty.

**-The Wookies: **The Wookies are tall hairy humanoids native to the jungle planet Kashyyyk. Kashyyyk is a unique planet since it only has one season throughout the year since unlike most other planets; Kashyyyk doesn't orbit on an angle. Wookies are tall, can grow up to 3 meters tall, are covered head to toe in thick fur, which is usually brown or black, and sometimes white. Because of their size, Wookies are force to eat 3500-6000 calories a day. Despite this, Wookies have a very long life span and probably the longest lived species in the Republic. Some Wookies serve in the Republic military but one problem is that they are unable to communicate with other species, while they can understand other languages; Wookies are unable to speak it and often speak in growls. Wookies are also very aggressive and one joke is that a Wookie will pull his opponent's arms off if he loses a game of cards. Because of their looks and inability to speak other languages, Wookies are another prime target for Slavers which makes Kashyyyk one of the prime areas for protection.

**-The Rodians: **The Rodians are a species of reptilian humanoids originating from the planet Rodia. The Rodians generally have green scaly skin though sometimes this skin is yellow. They also have twin saucer-like antennae which are used to detect vibrations atop their heads. Because of this, Rodians are useful scouts because they can sense if there is an enemy nearby. Rodians are also expert climbers due to having suction cups at the end of their hands and feet. Rodians can also breathe on air saturated worlds without the need for breathing equipment. The Rodians home planet of Rodia is swampy and a jungle world so many cities are built within domes to prevent dangerous wildlife from attacking the city. The Rodians desperately wanted to find new homes so they quickly accepted the Republic and many Rodians left to live new lives though they never forgot the harshness of their old home and that made the Rodians perfect to join the Republic Secret Service to serve missions on harsh terrain which the Rodians have experience with.

**-Mon Calamari: **One of the most recent discovered species in the Republic are the aquatic species known as Mon Calamari. The Mon Calamari are an amphibious species that can live in both land and water and they are capable of living underwater for long periods. While the Mon Calamari have a representative on the Republic Senate, the people back on their home planet of Mon Cala are ruled by a royal family. The Mon Calamari are also often members of the Republic Secret Service and generally serve missions involving water die to them being able to win underwater without equipment. However their home planet of Mon Cala is one of the more unstable region of the Republic space and this is due to another major species living on the planet as well known as the Quarrens.

**-The Quarrens: **The other major species of Mon Cala are the squid like Quarrens. Just like the Mon Calamari, the Quarrens can live on both land and water but the two species often argue over who should be the rulers of the planet and represent Mon Cala on the Senate. This makes the fear of Civil War a worry factor of the Senate and while the Senators try their best to keep the peace between the two species, many fear that it is only a matter of time before the Senate is forced to choose which species to support.

**-The Na'vi: **The Na'vi are the only Republic discovered species not to have a seat on their home planet. Discovered on the moon Pandora, the Na'vi are tall blue skinned humanoids who are expert hunters and trackers. Pandora is a mineral rich world and is full of exotic landscapes. Relations between the Republic and Na'vi were tense and so the Republic only has a small research outpost of 200 stationed on the planet and sometimes tour guides bring tourists to the moon to view the landscape. Any visitors have to wear breathing equipment when outside the science base since Pandora's atmosphere is toxic to most species. The Na'vi are split into different factions as different tribes have different ways of life, some live in very tall trees known as hometrees, some live on large plains hunting on 6 legged horses while others live on the coast and fish using flying creatures known as ikran. Relations between the Republic and Na'vi improved after the Batarians attacked the moon hoping to enslave the Na'vi but were fought back by a joined force of Republic starfighters who beat them in space and some of Pandora's wildlife who beat the Batarians on land, this victory improved relations and now Na'vi are more accepting of the Republic and though not members, they still allow Republic visitors to visit the moon. The Republic has a military base in the same system in order to protect the Na'vi against any future attack.

**-The Mirialans: **The Mirialans are a near human species that look so much like humans except for their pale green skin and they have a strong connection to the world around them. Their homeworld is the planet Miral near the Terminus systems and as a result, they became a Republic species in order to get protection from the raiding factions from the Terminus Systems.

**-The Besalisks: **Sometimes nicknamed the Republic's Elcor, the Besalisks are a tall species from the planet Ojom. The Besalisks key feature is they four massive arms and orange skin and are often involved in heavy fighting. Many Besalisks often open small business on Arcturus Station and are often also hard working in Republic shipbuilding operations which make the Besalisks respectable people for their hard work.

-**The Neinodians: **Exiled from Citadel Space many years ago, the Neinodians from the planet Neimodia have been forced to live a policy which forced them to fund outlaw activity for many years due to many years of Citadel sanctions against them. The origins of this was refusing to adandom the use of AIs after the creation of the Geth. The Neinodians were one of the biggest producers of AI in their Battledroids which protected trade. Republic Representatives approached them and offered their Trade Federation rights in the Republic which allowed the Neinodians to start becoming large trade partners again and are heavily involved in investment and banking in the Republic which is why they are often nicknamed the Republic Volus by the Citadel.

**-The Zabrak: **One of more independent of the Republic species are the Zabrak. This near human species come from the planet Iridonia and are natural biotics with a strong connection to it. They have a range of different skin colours with some looking almost like humans while others look more alien but they all have the spikes on their head. They are also a very religious people and they often selected their leaders known as the Nightsisters who train people in biotics to fight wars.

**-The Iktotchi: **Hailing from the moon Ithor, the Iktotchi are also near human except for have two large horns that dangle from their head. Like many other Republic species, the Iktotchi are very ambitious and hoped to one day have power just like the humans and the Chiss.

**-The Kel Dor: ** Of all the species in the Republic, the Kel Dor are the only ones that require breathing masks to breathe on most worlds since oxygen is toxic to them. Their home planet of Dorin is a world that has an atmosphere made up of Helium and Dorin gas. Despite this disadvantage, the Kel Dor are excellent fighter pilots and are often involved in fighter squadrons for the Republic. The Kel Dor are also able to breathe is space much easier thanks to their breather masks so they even take high risk missions to sabotage enemy ships during a battle which makes the Kel Dor a brave people to the Republic.

**-Yoda: **The creature known as Yoda is a small green skinned creature found on the planet Dagobah, the only sentient creature found on the planet. This creature was also a natural biotic and would replace the Asari and Turian teachers teaching the Republic biotics after several cases of abuse of power by the teachers. His training led to the founding of a biotic order called the Jedi which teaches that Biotics should be used for protecting people and not for gaining power.

**Arcturus Station: **Arcturus Station is the capital of the Republic, constructed over a number of years and still being built, the base is the Republic's version of the Citadel and is a floating city in the Arcturus system. Every single species in the Republic is represented her and they all have their own piece of the station. As well as being a place for politics, the station is also a space city as there are people who live on the city. Life on the station is like living on any other planet with bars for bringing, arcades for playing in as well as combat simulators for residents to use. The Station is also a tourist attraction for both Republic and Citadel species and there are many shops and hotels for these people to stay in. To maintain order in the station, the Republic uses locals from the station which are trained by former soldiers from the Republic military. These local soldiers are more like policemen than soldiers and they concentrate on preventing crime in particular smuggling since they have to prevent illegal substances or explosives from getting onto the station. Many of the Council Races have an embassy on the station which allows them to talk with the Republic when they need to

**-The Republic Senate: **Unlike the Citadel Council which is represented by 1 representative from the major species, the Senate has many representatives from every race. Each home planet is represented by one elected member from that planet; the only exception to this is Mon Cala which has two due to there being two major species on the planet. Every major colony also has a representative for their planet so this results in there being many different members in the senate. The Senate always meets together and they live on Arcturus Station until their term as a Senator is finished which is usually 4 years. Senators can have 2 terms as a senator and they someone else has to be senator for that planet. A separate group of trained soldiers who are nicknamed Blue Robes since they wear blue armour and cloaks guards the Senate to keep them safe from assassins as sometimes rivals try to kill their enemy. The senate meets to discuss trade laws and also if the Republic is going to war, if the majority of the Senate votes for war then the Republic goes to war, this is the only time when the Senators remain in power until the war is over.

**-Supreme Chancellor: **At the start of every term, the Senators elect one of them to be the Supreme Chancellor. This is the head of the Senate and represents the Republic as a whole. Just like the Senators, the Chancellor may only have 2 terms in office before leaving although if a Chancellor is a senator in their second term as a senator, then they stay for a 3rd term. In times when the Republic is in a crisis then the Chancellor is given emergency powers and absolute control over the Republic although this has never happened yet as the Verge War was not a full crisis. During the Shanxi War, emergency powers were nearly given but they were prevented when all-out war was prevented. The current Chancellor of the Senate is Mon Mothma, a diplomat who was the Senator for the colony of Chandrila. Mothma has been described as a diplomat who encourages peace with the Citadel and is against war although she approves of fighting against pirates to protect their colonies and she deeply cares for the people of the Republic. Mon Mothma was the one who encouraged closer ties with the Citadel but this has led some senators to fear she might make the Republic join the Citadel Council although this is unlikely.

**Republic Armed Service: **While each home planet has its own fleet to defend their home planet from attack, many colonies relay on the protection of the Republic in order to protect themselves from pirate attacks. There were three aspects of the Republic Armed Services, the Navy, the Army or being a fighter pilot. Each part of the military has it's own training academy so that they can train to be used in that section of what they were doing. The armed services are also a way of keeping the Republic together as many species work in different parts of the military although some are concerned about having their home planet's defence done by a foreign power so many of the Home Defence Fleets are made up of that planet's species.

**-Republic Secret Service: **After the confrontation between the Republic and the Citadel, the Senate voted to establish their own secret service group similar to the Citadel Spectres in order to monitor threats towards the Republic. These Agents were handpicked from the military training academies and are sent undercover to investigate any threat whether it be terrorists or from pirate attacks. Unlike the Spectres, the public doesn't know who the Agents are which makes it difficult for them to be discovered during their missions.

**End:**

**Notes: **Well this is a brief summary of the different parts of the Republic and the species and the government. I was going to use the different spaceships and vehicles on this chapter but I need to do a bit more research on that so that codex will be at the end of this story. Just to let you know, some major characters from the Star Wars series will be appearing in the series but some might not be until the Mass Effect 2 story as I do plan to bring in Han Solo into the Mass Effect 2 storyline. Luke Skywalker will be appearing but will not be a major character. Other species from the Star Wars universe will also only start appearing when we get to Mass Effect 2. One last thing, sadly story updates on all my stories will be slow because I have a lot of university work to do and then exams later but I will try and update when I can but don't expect updates to be often.


	3. A New Mission

**A New Mission:**

**Mass Wars  
Episode 1: The Dark Threat:**

**It is a period of tension in the galaxy; two galactic governments compete with each other to have more control of the galaxy. These galactic governments, the Citadel Council and the Republic of Allied Species have different beliefs on how the galaxy should be run and species of the two galactic governments have clashed which threaten galactic war.**

**In order to prevent a galactic war, scientists of both governments have agreed to work of a project which they hope will bring the governments together. This project named as project NORMANDY is a new prototype ship which with the combined technology may bring a new class of warship.**

**The NORMANDY'S maiden mission is right at the same time when the Republic colony of EDEN PRIME has unearthed some sort of ancient artefact which may help build bridges between the governments. The NORMANDY has been assigned to collect this piece of history.**

...

The Solar System is the home system of the human race and many places have been settled. Small colonies on moons and mining on Asteroids, the Solar System was one of the larger systems in the galaxy and a beauty to look out. The largest planet in the system was the gas giant Jupiter which was known but its large red spot which was a permanent storm. Just passing the planet was a large ship. The spaceship was painted black and had wings coming out of the side near the rear with two large boasters on each wing giving the ship four engines in total. On the sides of the ship was the name of the Ship known as the Normandy.

RSV Normandy was a new prototype frigate which had only recently been complete and was now on its shakedown cruise. The ship would have a crew of about 300 but since it was just a shakedown cruise, the ship only had a crew of about 150. The ship was black in colour with the name in white letters. The ship was also built with three separate decks. The top deck was the Command Deck; this deck contained the frigate's bridge at the very front where the ships pilots would control the ship. The bridge was built with a separate kinetic shield that would protect the pilots if the ship were to exposed in space and air pressure lost, that way the pilot could still control the ship.

Near to the back of the ship was the Command Information centre or CIC. On the Normandy, this was unusual because it was at the rear instead of being in the middle like normal Republic ships were. Because this ship was a Turian design, Republic specialists wanted to see how their version of a CIC would do on a Republic vessel. The CIC had many crewmembers on stations that worked the guns or controlled the hatched to allow the shuttle to launch. The Galaxy Map was also at the CIC which would allow the Command and Navigator to plot a course to where they wanted to go. Just behind the CIC was a conference room, this would be where the officers of the ship would discuss their mission and it could also be linked with either the Citadel Council or the Republic Senate.

The second deck was the quarter's deck. This deck was where the crew would sleep during rotations as some crew would sleep while others would work although the officers had separate quarters. This deck was also home to a small medical office where crew would be helped if they were injured as well as a small kitchen where food for crew would be prepared. Located further on from the kitchen and medical office was the Droid dock. This was where the Astromech Droids and Protocol Droids where kept until they were needed. Astromech Droids were small droids that rolled around on wheels. They were used to fix damages to the ship and can be sent to the outside of the ship to fix damages on the outside. Protocol Droids where used to store data as well as translate the language of other species. They were important when speaking with other species that were unable to speak Galactic Standard as they could translate what was being said. These Droids were classed as AIs by the Citadel since many could think for themselves but to the Republic, that was limited as they were programmed to serve the needs of the Republic and they often form a bond with the crew of the ship that they serve on.

The final deck was the Engineer and Storage Deck. This deck was where the ship's drive core was kept which was well protected by shields as well as a cargo bay for cargo that the ship carried. It was also a hanger as the ship kept some vehicles here for ground crews. There was a UT-46 Kodiak drop shuttle that was used to send crews down to planets. Even though the Normandy is a small ship, it was not designed to land on the surface of planets but could dock with ports on planets. This shuttle would send crew down to the planet instead if there was no port. It was also home to a M35 Mako tank. The Mako was a fast moving 6 wheeled all terrain tank that was designed to be dropped from the hanger and then used to explore uncharted worlds. Republic army vehicles tented to be large walkers such as the All-Terrain Armoured Transport or ATAT which was heavily armoured and used to carry troops across dangerous battlefields but was also quite slow and unable to walk along mountainous terrain which many uncharted planets were so the Mako was a more useful vehicle.

Walking up the stairs was a woman in her mid-twenties. She had auburn red hair that went down to her shoulders and green eyes. She wore a suit of Republic Armour that was black in colour with a red N7 over her left breast. Over her right breast was a small plaque, grey in colour with six coloured squares, three red over three blue. Right next to the plaque on either side were two small cylinders with red and blue tips on the end. It was clear that she was well known as several soldiers saluted her as she walked past. Below the plaque was her name, which said Shepard.

Commander Jane Alice Shepard was one of the most famous heroes in the Republic today. Both her parents, Hannah and William had served in the Republic Navy and so she had grown up on spaceships. Her mother was now the Executive officer on the RSV Kilimanjaro, a Republic Dreadnought and the flagship of the Republic First Fleet. Sadly William Shepard died several years ago, he had been discharged from the navy after his ship, RSV Broadsword had been destroyed during the Verge War. He had been ejected into space and exposed to the vacuum of space after his suit was damaged. He had been recovered before he died but he was left with breathing problems afterwards due to toxic air from the planet's atmosphere leaking into his air tank. He had been forced to leave the navy. He had lived on Arcturus Station so his wife wasn't far off but his illness got worse and he collapsed while exploring the Station. He died a few days later at the hospital but he did get to see his family again before he died.

Jane Alice Shepard had chosen to join navy just like her parents. She had studied hard while training and she had even been accepted into the N7 program which trained the best soldiers in the army. Shepard also piloted ships as well since she had experience in ships. She was well known for her actions while in the fighting. During the Skyllian Blitz on Elysium, Shepard had been on shore leave when the attack came. She had been able to hold off an assault until reinforcements came and she became a war Hero for her actions as she prevented the Slavers and Pirates from gaining a strong foothold. Shepard's heroism allowed her to become known as the Saviour of Elysium and earn the Star of Arcturus, the highest medal you could get in the Republic military.

As she walked through the CIC, she heard the ship's pilot talk over the ship radio "We are preparing the Hyperdrive, all hand, prepare for lightspeed." Shepard made it into the ship's bridge where 3 people were sitting. Two were sitting on pilot seats at the front while the other sat further back. The front two wore pilot uniforms and their Rank plaques had a single row of 3 coloured squares, two blue next to one red which showed their ranks as naval lieutenants. The other person had a plaque with three red squares next to two blue showing his rank as an army major. One of the pilots had short brown hair underneath a cap and had a shaved beard while the other had no beard along with short blond hair. The final man had sleek black hair and a shaved face.

"Placing coordinates for Eden Prime into the Navy Computer" the man with the hat said

Soon the other man spoke "Coordinates places, prepare to jump." Both men pushed the lever in-between them down and they watched as the world in front of them changed and soon they were travelling faster than lightspeed.

Shepard looked at the man with the cap "Joker, how are we doing?" she asked

The man with the cap with Jeff Moreau or better known as Joker. he was the main pilot who had been assigned to pilot the ship "Thrusters, check, navigation check. Internal emissions sink engaged. All systems online. Drift, just under 1500 K"

It was then that an alien walked into the room. This alien stood over 6 feet with two fingers on each hand along with a thumb which were all equipped with sharp talons. His mouth was surrounded by a pair of mandibles and the skin looked like metallic carapace. This was a Turian from the planet Palaven and he was briefly on the Normandy to see how it was run.

"1500 is good" the Turian stated "Your captain will be pleased" and then he quickly left.

Joker snorted "I hate that guy."

The other pilot looked at him "Nihlus gave you a compliment so you hate him."

Joker looked at him "Luke, we just jumped halfway across the galaxy and hit the target the size of a pinhead. Using our hyperdrives is not as easy as it looks because we could hit another planet or run too close to a supernova if we're not careful."

"I don't like having him on board" the final man stated "He's a Citadel Spectre and they're trouble. We shouldn't allow them to be close to our technology because they could steal it."

The man known as Luke shoot his head "You paranoid Kaidan, the Citadel helped fund this project so they have a right to send someone to check on their investment."

Shepard then spoke up "Normally I would agree but it's seems a bit odd to send a Spectre on a shakedown run."

"So there's more to this that what the Captain is telling us" Joker stated

It was then that someone called over the radio "Joker, Status Report"

"Just jumped into Hyperspace Captain Anderson." Joker stated, "The Stealth systems are engaged. Everything looks solid."

The captain of the Normandy was Captain David Anderson, just like Shepard, he too was a big hero in the Republic. He was one of the first people to past the N7 test and became a decorative soldier. He played a role during the Shanxi war when he was the XO of the RSV Hastings and was involved with foiling a conspiracy in the Republic when a Research facility of the planet Sidon was conducting illegal AI research. While this was legal in the Republic, it was closely monitored and this research was not. Anderson had looked into this and discovered that Dr Shu Qian was a traitor and was working for Batarian extremists who were studying an ancient artefact to create powerful weapons. When this was revealed, the Republic and Citadel teamed up to stop this and it resulted on an mission to the Batarian colony of Camala. The mission was successful but an explosion in an Element Zero refinery resulted in huge civilian casualties. The Citadel Spectre who had been assigned to the mission tried to blame Anderson but evidence found by Republic Intelligence discovered that the Spectre had been responsible for the explosion and it created more tensions between the Citadel and Republic. After the mission, Anderson had stayed in the navy and served on other vessels before being named Captain of the Normandy. Some of the other important crewmembers such as Dr Chakwas and Navigator Pressly spoke higher of him since they had served with him before on other ships.

Right now, Anderson was telling Joker what to do next "Good, find a comm. buoy and link us to the network, I want mission reports relayed back to the Republic brass before we reach Eden Prime."

"Aye Captain" Luke stated as he began pressing buttons "Better brace yourself, I think Nihlus is heading your way."

"He's already here" Anderson stated "Tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the comm. room for a debriefing."

"Aye Captain" Luke stated and turned around to look at Shepard "You heard that didn't you?"

"I did" Shepard stated "He sounds pretty annoyed though, I wonder if something has gone wrong?"

"Maybe" Kaidan stated "Or maybe he knows something more and is annoyed that he had to hide it"

"Well I guess we'll find out" Shepard stated and then she left the Bridge. She walked through the CIC where she saw the Navigator Officer Pressly arguing with Engineer officer Adams using the communication hologram.

"I'm telling you I saw him" Pressly hissed "He was walking through here like he was on a mission."

"He's a Spectre" Adams said over the hologram "They're always on a mission."

"And we're getting dragged right into the middle of it" Pressly stated angrily

"Relax Pressly" Adams stated "You'll give yourself an ulcer." He then disconnected the hologram.

Charles Pressly was the Normandy's navigational officer. He would handle the navigation of the ship and give the coordinates to Joker when they were travelling. Pressly was one of those who was suspicious of the Citadel in particular the Turians because his grandfather had served in the Shanxi war. He knew Shepard well because he had been posted on RSV Agincourt which had been the first ship to arrive at Elysium during the Blitz. After the crisis he had been made an officer and be posted on the Normandy.

Gregory Adams was the Normandy's engineering Officer; it was his job to make sure that the ship's power does not overload and explode. He is much more friendly towards both the Citadel Races and other Republic races as he had worked with many of them before. Since the power core had Element Zero in it which Republic Ships didn't normally use, Adams had to work hard with several Asari and Salarians so that he would be able to control the core. He also knew Anderson personally because they had once served on the same ship which was the RSV Tokyo.

Pressly turned around and looked at Shepard "Congratulations Commander" he said as he saluted "Looks like we've had a smooth run. Are you heading to see the captain?"

Shepard looked at him "It sounds like you don't trust our guest."

Pressly sighed "Sorry commander" he stated "I didn't mean to cause any trouble. It's just that my grandfather fought against his kind back in the Shanxi war. It makes me a bit worried about him and I'm not the only one. Sure the Turians helped design this ship but having a Spectre on board is unusual. This was meant to be a shakedown run to test the Stealth systems but why place Anderson in charge. He's not the type of person who would be assigned to a small mission like this so I just suspect that he's hiding something."

"Well I guess that I'll find out" Shepard stated and then she walked away towards the Com room. Just outside were two more people, one was a woman with greying hair while the other was a younger male in his early twenties. The woman was Dr Karin Chakwas, she was the ship's medical officer and handled the treatment of the crew and also injuries taken by guests or soldiers when they fought on planets. The male was Corporal Rickard L Jenkins, a marine and also a colonist who was born on Eden Prime as he was now telling to the Doctor.

"I grew up on Eden Prime Doc" Jenkins stated "It's not the kind of place Spectres visit. There's something Nihlus isn't telling us about this mission"

"That's crazy" Chakwas defended "The captain's in charge here, he wouldn't take orders from a Spectre"

"Not his choice Doc" Jenkins stated "Spectres don't answer to anyone, they can do whatever they want, kill anyone who gets in their way"

Chakwas laughed "You watch too many spy films corporal"

Jenkins then looked at Shepard as she walked by "What do you think Commander?" he asked "We won't be staying on Eden Prime long, I'm itching for some real action"

"I hope you're kidding corporal" Chakwas hissed "Your real action usually ends up with me patching crew members in the infirmary"

Shepard looked at Jenkins "Action isn't about being a hero, it's about doing your job to save the lives of innocents or to take down the enemy."

"You've seen a lot of action in your time Commander" Jenkins stated "Your name is known all over the Republic and I want to be a Hero as well"

"You must be careful in a battle Jenkins" Shepard stated "In a battle, you could get attacked at any time. I've seen a few get shot by a sniper before they even had a chance to fight back."

Jenkins sighed "I'm sorry Commander; it's just that I've never been on a mission like this. I've hardly ever seen action like you have. Most of my postings have been on patrols with hardly any action at all."

"Just treat this mission like any other and you'll do fine" Shepard stated

"Easy for you to say" Jenkins sighed "You've been on ships nearly all your life and you were on Elysium during the Blitz. Everyone knows what you can do. This could be my chance; I have to show the Republic what I can do."

"You have a long life ahead of you corporal" Sheppard stated "Don't do something to mess it up. One mistake is all that it takes to get you killed."

"Don't worry Commander" Jenkins stated "I won't mess it up."

"Well it's been a nice chat but the Captain is waiting for me" Shepard stated

"Good luck with him Commander" Chakwas stated "Maybe he will be able to tell you what is going on."

Shepard soon made it to the com room but Captain Anderson wasn't there. Instead the Turian Spectre Nihlus was there instead. The Turian turned around and looked at him "Commander Shepard, I was hoping that you would get here first. It will give us time to talk."

"Talk about what?" Shepard asked

"I'm curious about this world we're going to" he stated "Eden Prime, I've heard it's quite beautiful"

"People say that it's a paradise" Shepard stated "Eden Prime was one of the Republic's first colonies and now it is an example for the unity between the Republic races."

"Yes a Paradise" Nihlus stated "They say that Eden Prime is an example for the Republic that they can establish colonies and protect them but how safe is it."

Shepard looked confused "What's that suppose to mean?" she questioned

"The Republic is a new Galactic government that has only been around for about 20 years" Nihlus stated "The Citadel council has been around for thousands of years and we had to fight through some extreme Galactic wars such as the Rachni Wars and the Krogan Rebellions. Your Republic has never been through anything like that."

"The Chiss may have at some point" Shepard stated "But Eden Prime has the Republic Sixth Fleet nearby. Because Eden Prime along with Terra Nova are very important colonies, they have a Fleet nearby to protect them if they were needed."

"Some people that I knew fought in the Shanxi conflict" Nihlus stated "They told me that your Republic knew how to fights wars and that may be important but we should all hope that never happens, war are terrible and leave so many victims."

It was then that Captain David Anderson walked into the Com room "A War which might start if the wrong people know about this." He stated

Shepard looked at him "Know about what?" he asked "This isn't just some shakedown run"

Anderson shook his head "It wasn't told because of how important this mission is and we couldn't allow it to go wrong. We should tell you what's going on. We are making a pick up on Eden Prime. We are picking up some packages that are very important to the galaxy. This mission is top secret which is why the Stealth systems are activated."

"What's this package and why is it so secret?" Shepard asked

"This information was on a need to know basis." Nihlus stated

"About a week ago, some researchers on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of beacon during an excavation" Anderson stated "This beacon was Prothean"

"I thought the Protheans vanished 50,000 years ago?" Shepard questioned

"They did" Nihlus stated "They're Empire once spread across the galaxy and their technology is still used today. The Citadel, the Mass Relays, they were all built by the Protheans. Of course the Republic went down a different technology path but this ship is based on Prothean design."

"This discovery wouldn't have suited the Republic since we don't use Prothean technology" Anderson stated "But Chancellor Mon Mothma said that this could be a major discovery so she wanted to share it to help build bridges with the Citadel. Eden Prime doesn't have the materials for this kind of research so we're taking the Beacon to the Citadel so their scientists can study it further. The Stealth systems are needed so the beacon isn't stolen."

Shepard looked at him "Who would steal a Prothean Beacon?" she asked

"Many people commander" Nihlus stated "This Beacon could be anything, it could be a history of the Protheans or a weapons cache and we don't want it falling into the wrong hands."

"Eden Prime isn't far from the area controlled by the Batarian Hegemony and they might see a Beacon as something they could try and steal." Anderson stated "Attacking Eden Prime would start a war but that would be worth it for a Prothean beacon." He then looked around carefully to make sure that no one was listening "There is something else that I was only just told. Just this morning the researchers discovered something else that has never been discovered by anyone. They found the remains of a whole Prothean city and as well as finding some old data disks, they found a stasis pod with a living Prothean."

This shocked Nihlus "The council were never informed of this" he stated

Anderson sighed "This was only just discovered and the Council and Senate themselves were only just informed. This could be the biggest discover ever made, no one has ever discovered a Living Prothean so this discovery has created interest everywhere. But this pod must be handled with care, we don't want to accidently kill what could be the last Living Prothean so taking this Pod must be done carefully. Opening the Pod will be dangerous and difficult which is why several Prothean experts are being brought to help remove the Pod safely without damaging it."

"So we're just getting the Beacon and Pod and getting out" Shepard stated

Nihlus spoke up "The Council wants this mission done fast Shepard before the wrong people learn about it" he stated "With the living Prothean this mission just got more dangerous. Someone could take that Living Prothean and use it for the wrong reasons."

"People like Cerberus" Anderson stated "Republic Intelligence has learnt of them doing horrible experiments on people and this things they could do if they get their hands on the Prothean could be catastrophic for the Galaxy. There are already some Senators in the Senate who are suspected of funding Cerberus activities but if they ended up taking over the Senate then they could wage war with the Citadel and the things they learn from this Prothean could aid in that"

"Well I better get down to the Shuttle with Jenkins and Kaidan" Shepard stated

Anderson then went to the radio "Joker, tell Luke to head over to the Shuttle to take our passengers down to Eden Prime." He ordered

"Aye Captain" Joker's voice called over the radio "But you need to hear this, we've just got a message from the Sixth Fleet at Eden Prime."

"Put it through" Anderson ordered and then he heard the message.

"This is Admiral Garrick Versio of the 63rd task force" the voice called "Eden Prime is under attack I repeat Eden Prime is under attack. A fleet of warships appeared and have engaged our fleet. We are currently holding the fleet but a massive unknown warship blasted through our fleet and is now on Eden Prime. We are currently holding off the remaining ships but there are reports of attacks on the ground and those people need assistance. I'm sending a live feed towards you."

Then footage appeared on one of the computers which showed heavy fighting taking place with the soldiers currently stationed on Eden Prime fighting some unknown force. One soldier ran over to the person with the Camera "Get down" she ordered and the camera kept moving around so it was difficult to see what was going on and then an officer looked at the camera.

"We are under attack" he shouted "Taking heavy casualties, I repeat taking heavy casualties. They came out of nowhere, we need..." the officer was then shot in the chest. There was then a strange sound and the camera caught the shocked faces of the soldiers and then turned to large metal machine appearing in the sky. The camera then fell to the floor and then there was only static.

"The footage ends there" Joker stated "There's nothing, communication goes dead after that."

Anderson wanted to look at something again "Reverse and hold at 38.5" he ordered and then the footage went to when the strange ship appeared and Anderson looked at Nihlus who looked confused "Do you know anything about that?"

Nihlus shook his head "I've never seen anything like that" he stated

Nihlus contacted Joker "How far away are we?"

"17 minutes out" Joker responded "The Sixth fleet can hold out but the people on Eden Prime are vulnerable"

Anderson looked at Shepard "Get you team down to the Shuttle quickly." Then he contacted Joker again "Joker, send Luke to the Shuttle then as soon as we are out of Hyperspace, send the Shuttle quickly and get us there fast. This situation just got a lot more complicated."

**Chapter End:  
Notes: **Well this is the first proper chapter of my story and I've introduced my Shepard in this story which I chose a female Spaceborn who is a war hero. I also brought Luke Skywalker to be the co-pilot in the Normandy and the man who pilots the Shuttle. His back-story will be explained later on. Over time several Star Wars characters will play roles throughout the story but I am currently decided on how the Republic Fleets will work since by Mass Effect standards, Star Wars Star Destroyers are Dreadnought size and I don't want the Republic to be too overpowered. I'm also not too sure on the Crew size of the Normandy but this Normandy is a bit larger than the Mass Effect version but not as large as the SR2 which is why we have the shuttle which the SR1 didn't have.


	4. Eden Prime

**Eden Prime:**

Captain Anderson came over to the Bridge along with Nihlus and Commander Sheppard so that they could see what was going on. The sudden attack on Eden Prime came as a complete shock, this discovery had been top secret so who was behind the attack. It couldn't be the Batarians since they did not have the technology to make a ship that size plus the Hegemony were still recovering from the split that broke the Hegemony in half and created the Batarian Commonwealth. So who was behind this attack?

"Approaching Eden Prime Captain" Joker stated "Stealth systems are engaged."

"Good" Anderson stated "We don't want whoever's behind this to know that we are here."

"Exiting Light speed in three, two one." Joker said and then as soon as the countdown finished, the ship came out of hyperspace and was now at Eden Prime. What they saw shocked everyone, they could see a massive space battle taking place above the surface of Eden Prime and the battle was right above the planet's capital city of Constant. The 63rd task force was taking a beating from the battle but they were still holding strong.

The Republic fleets were used to defend the major colonies and they had many different ships. The Republic were not bound by the Citadel's treaty of Farixen which limited the number of Dreadnoughts that a species was allowed. Most Republican ships were based of the Chiss ship designs and were known as Star Destroyers and while they all had the same dagger shaped design, they all had unique differences. The massive Resurgence Class Star Destroyers were the largest ships built, over 1000 meters long, they were they dreadnoughts of the Republic and carried many large cannons which were used in space battles as well as turbo lasers for fighting off enemy fighters and bombers. The key feature on these Star Destroyers was the two large balls beside the main bridge which held the shield generators of the ship. There were three Resurgence class Star Destroyers in the 63rd task force which were Admiral Versio's flagship, the Eviscerator, the Basilisk and the Hydra.

The Venator Class Star Destroyers were the older version of the Resurgence Class and now they were the fleet carriers of the Republic. The Venator Class had been both Dreadnoughts and fleet carriers but after the Resurgence ships were introduced, the main cannons were removed and replaced with new aircraft holds. A Venator Star Destroyer could hold up to 80 star fighters. Task forces tended to had two Venator Class fleet carriers, the Defence and the Avenger. One carrier carried fighters while the other had bombers. Some offensive fleets would have a third carrier used to carry larger strike fighters that would strike the enemy fleet then pull out.

While the task forces only had about three dreadnoughts and two or three carriers, there were still many other ships that made up the fleets. The next largest ships in the fleet were the cruisers and there were different classes of these Cruisers. The largest Republic Cruisers were the Acclamator class command cruisers. Measuring about 750 meters long, it was armed with turbolaser batteries which were the ship to ship guns and quad laser batteries which were the ship to starfighter guns. These ships often commanded the vanguard of the fleet which included smaller Arquitens class light cruisers which were about 350 meters long. Another Cruiser class was the Gozanti Class cruiser which was a small heavily armoured starship. These ships were only 64 meters long so they were quite small and sometimes classed as a frigate. However due to their heavy armour, they were classed as a cruiser and were often used a patrol ships because they could also carry four fighters as well.

Frigates were often used for escorts or scouting and also for transporting important individuals around. The largest Frigates were the EF76 Nebulon-B Frigates. These ships were 300 meters long and were made in two large parts connected by a thin tube that was the main corridor. These ships were often used as the Medical Frigates and were lightly armoured but they could still fight against an enemy fleet. There was also the Hammerhead Corvettes which measured at 315 meters long and were often used for ramming attacks. CR90 Corvettes were small 150 meter longs ships which were often used for transporting important individuals. They were still armoured but were often not used for combat as they were a diplomatic ship, not a Warship.

On the Normandy, Captain Anderson and the rest of the Bridge crew watched in horror as the Sixth fleet began engaging a fleet which was made up of cruisers. While the Dreadnoughts and Carriers were still holding, the crew could see that several Cruisers and Frigates had been destroyed and their remains were around the fight. The fighters engaged the enemy fleet but were often targeted by the enemy laser batteries and destroyed.

"Just what is going on here?" Anderson demanded and he looked at Nihlus "Do you know who those ships belong to?"

Nihlus shook his head "Those ships do not match any known ship design and I've seen many ship classes."

"There's nothing we can do right now" Anderson stated and he looked at Joker "Get us as close as you can to the dig sight and then we'll drop the team of. Then find us a place so we can contact Arcturus and get reinforcements here and inform the Senate of what's going on. Hopefully we can avoid a diplomatic incident here." He then looked at Nihlus and Shepard "You two better go and get ready to take the Shuttle, remember, we get the Beacon and pod then get out and make sure you get them before whoever attacking us does."

"Understood Captain" Shepard replied "I'll get Kaidan and Jenkins then go to the Shuttle." Shepard then left to prepare for a fight.

…

Joker brought the Normandy down through Eden Prime's atmosphere, the Normandy was designed to enter a planet's outer atmosphere and then launch the shuttle which would take the crew down to the planet's surface. This took careful calculations otherwise the ship could enter the atmosphere too steep and then start to break apart. But Joker was a very skilled and experienced pilot so he got the Normandy into position and then Luke lifted off from the Normandy's hanger and started to head towards the landing zone.

The shuttle flew through Eden Prime's atmosphere and then flew over the Dig site "Someone was doing some serious digging here" Luke said to himself when he saw the dig site.

In the rear end of the Shuttle, Shepard, Kaidan, Jenkins and Nihlus were in their gear and had their weapons ready. Anderson was back in the Normandy but he could communicate using the hologram. A small hologram of Anderson spoke to them "Your team is the muscle in this operation Commander" he told them "Go in heavy and head straight to the Dig site."

Kaidan looked at Anderson's hologram "What about survivors Captain?" he asked

"That's a secondary objective." Anderson stated "Save who you can but remember that the mission comes first, you have to prevent the Beacon and Pod from being captured."

"We're approaching drop point one" Luke said on the radio

Jenkins looked over at Nihlus who looked like he was ready to jump out of the shuttle "Nihlus are you coming with us?" he asked

Nihlus shook his head "I move faster on my own" he stated as he held a shotgun and then he jumped out of the shuttle as it got lower to the ground.

"Nihlus will scout out ahead" Anderson told the remaining three "He'll feed you status reports throughout the mission, otherwise I want radio silence, and we can't let anyone hear us."

Shepard nodded "Ready to go captain" she stated

"The mission's all yours Commander" Anderson stated "Good luck."

...

Luke landed the shuttle at the second drop point and the three soldiers got off. With the threat of enemies around them, they pulled out their assault rifles and were now on alert to make sure that they could not be taken by surprise.

It was clear that whoever was attacking had chosen to attack the dig site as they could see the smoke. They could hear gunfire and fighting but they had no idea who was attacking. There were also fires nearby so it was clear that the enemy had been here during the attack.

"This place got hit hard Commander" Nihlus called over the radio "There are hostiles everywhere, keep your guard up."

All three of the soldiers had seen battle at some point but for Jenkins, this hit him the hardest. This was his home, Jenkins had been born here and he was shocked to see his home planet was being destroyed "I can't believe it" he said "This is my home; we're mainly peaceful farmers, why would they attack us."

"It's not the colony" Kaidan stated "It's the beacon they're after. But even so, a farming colony is easy pickings for Slavers."

"My mother told me stories about what happened on Mindoir." Shepard stated "She said that some soldiers suffered PTSD from what they saw. People packed into cages like animals and branded as well as being mutilated. It was why the Republic started our big campaign against the Batarian Slavers during the verge war. I saw those atrocities again."

Kaidan looked at Jenkins "I'm sure your family will be okay" he told him "They may not be in the crossfire."

Jenkins sighed "My parents and siblings lives away from this area on one of the outer farms so they may be safe." It was then that he spotted something ahead. Kaidan and Shepard saw it to and pointed their rifles at it. It was a large white creature with a large body and it seemed to be floating "It's alright" Jenkins stated "Those are just gas bags, they're harmless although don't shoot them, they carry toxic gas under their skin. It's not lethal but it will make you ill."

"We better get moving" Shepard stated and then the three of them came towards the edge of a cliff and they stopped "I don't like this; this is just the perfect spot for an ambush."

"I'll scout ahead" Jenkins stated

"Fine but take it slow and don't play hero" Shepard stated

Jenkins slowly walked out from the cover and looked around with his rifle ready. He looked around and slowly walked forward. But he got a bit too far from Shepard and then it happened. Two small droids appeared ahead, they looked like small probes but then they fired their guns before Jenkins could react.

"Jenkins!" Shepard shouted as the Jenkins groaned as he got shot multiple times. Shepard ran from cover and fired her gun at one of the probes while Kaidan used his biotic powers to throw the other one off the cliff which smashed to pieces.

Jenkins collapsed to the floor and groaned and Shepard ran over to him "Just hold on Jenkins, I've got Medi-gel."

Jenkins coughed up blood "No Commander, those things ripped through my shields. I can't breathe, I can't breathe."

"Just hold on, we get help" Kaidan stated

Jenkins shook his head "No, it's too late for me" he choked as Shepard held his hand "Finish the mission, and tell my family that I'm sorry." Then Jenkins hand let go of Shepards and then fell to the ground and his head fell back as his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

Shepard sighed and now she saw that Jenkins was dead "I'm sorry Jenkins" she said to herself

Kaidan looked at Jenkins's armour "They ripped right through his shields, he didn't have a chance" he said "So what do we do now?"

"We carry on the mission" Shepard stated "We'll collect his body later."

The two of them carried on and they encountered several more of those little assault droids but they quickly managed to take care of them. Soon they came to a place that had seen battle. They saw the bodies of several marines and this looked like the place that they had seen in the emergency message. They saw a Marine wearing white armour with pink stripes running away as several robotic creatures fired their guns at her. Two more of them were placing a man in civilian clothing over a strange device. The man was still alive and looked at Shepard but then a large spike came up from the device and impaled the man in the chest. The robots looked at Shepard and then began firing their guns at her, Kaidan and the Marine. The three of them quickly took cover and began firing back. Shepard managed to shoot the heads of two of them while Kaidan used his biotics to bring several others together and crush them.

When the battle was over, Shepard and Kaidan looked at the Marine they had saved "Thanks for the help Commander" the Marine stated "I wasn't sure I was going to make it." She then saluted "Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212."

"Are you wounded Marine?" Shepard asked

Ashley shook her head "A few scratches and burns but other than that, nothing" she stated

"Just what happened here?" Kaidan asked

"Me and the rest of the squad were on patrol when we were ambushed." Ashley stated "Ever since the discovery the Republic has kept security tight here so that our discovery could be protected. But we weren't expecting something like that massive ship to blow through the Sixth fleet and once there was a gap, these droids stated attacking in large numbers. We were pulled back to the dig site to protect it but most of my squad was overwhelmed. We tried to protect the Civilians but some were captured and impaled on those spikes."

Kaidan looked at the remains of one of the robotic creatures that attacked them "I've never seen droids like this" he stated

Ashley sighed "I don't think these are simple droids" she stated "Most warfare droids are only programmed to do battle, simple battle droids wouldn't impale people of these spikes, I think these are Geth."

Shepard had heard stories about the Geth, they were robots created by the race known as the Quarians. They were once used as labour until they rebelled and drove the Quarians off their home planet of Rannoch. The Quarians have been rejected by the Citadel for this and have been made to live in exile on their fleet. The Republic is more tolerant of the Quarians and now he fleet is often seen in Republic space. The Quarians are expert engineers and the only reason they have not settle a planet in Republic space is due to the droids that are seen to be close to the Geth.

Kaidan spoke up "But the Geth haven't been through the Veil in 200 years" he stated "Why are they here now?"

"They may have come here for the beacon and pod" Ashley stated "I don't know what they would want with them but we have to stop them."

"Then we better get going then" Shepard stated and then the three of them carried on.

Then Nihlus called them over the comm. "There are a lot of burnt buildings here commander" he called "This place got hit hard, I've seen a number of bodies impaled on strange spikes."

"We've seen battle here Nihlus" Shepard responded "Jenkins is down but we got a marine with us, she's taking us to the Dig site. But it looks like the Geth are behind this attack."

"I've encountered these Geth as well." Nihlus responded "This is worse than I thought; we must get the beacon and Pod away from here now." Then there was a pause "Wait what's this." Then there was the sound of gunfire.

"Nihlus!" Shepard called in a panic "Nihlus, what's going on, are you alright"

"I'm fine commander" Nihlus called "But those spikes seen to be changing the people on them. I just got attacked by a few, I'm going to scout ahead and see what's going on, there's a spaceport nearby, I'm going to check it out."

Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan soon made it to the dig sit but the beacon wasn't there "This is the dig site the beacon was right here!" Ashley shouted "It must have been moved."

"By who, our side or the Geth?" Kaidan questioned

"Hard to say?" Ashley stated "Maybe we'll know more once we get to the research camp, that's where the Prothean pod is."

"Do you think anyone got out alive?" Shepard asked

"If they were lucky" Ashley suggested "Maybe they're hiding in the camp. It's just at the top of this ridge up the planks."

"Move out" Shepard ordered and the three of them walked up a set of planks that allowed them to reach the top of the dig site and soon they came to a small selection of buildings. "This is the research camp; all of our researchers were here studying the pod."

Kaidan stopped "I don't like this, it's just the perfect stop for an ambush, keep your guard up."

Then they spotted some of the spikes with people impaled on them just like they saw before. Only these people seemed to have been scraped of their skin. But then Ashley noticed that the people were moving "Oh my god, they're still alive!" she gasped "What did the Geth do to them?"

The spikes lowered and then the people impaled got off them but they didn't look human anymore. Their skin was blue and grey and they seemed to have cybernetics implanted in them. The creatures let out a huge roar before charging forcing the three marines to blast them. As soon as they were shot, they exploded in a ball of blue gung. As soon as they were all dead, they looked at the spikes "Just what are these things?" Ashley questioned "And what did they do to our people?"

"I think we better question the scientists about that?" Shepard stated "Where is the Pod, if that's here then we need to find it."

"It's in one of these buildings," Ashley stated and she walked over to one of them and tried to open the door "This was where the Pod was taken; it looks like the door is locked so the Pod may still be in there."

Kaidan may have been a biotic but he also had training in electronics and he was able to hack the controls and open the door. When the door opened, they saw several scientists inside who panicked.

The lead one who was a human female sighed in relief "Oh thank god, you're human," she stated "Shut that door before they come back."

"Don't worry" Shepard stated as she shut the door "We'll protect you."

There were four scientists in the room, a human female along with a human male along with a Chiss female and male Togruta. "Thank you" the human female stated "I think we'll be okay, I think they're gone now"

"I know you" Ashley stated "You're Dr Warren, the lead scientist in charge here."

"I am" the woman stated and then she pointed to the others, first to the human male "This is my assistance Manuel" then to the Chiss and Togruta "and that's Toss and her assistance Oroto"

"I've been busy studying this pod" Toss stated as she knelt and looked at the pod "We managed to find many data files but unfortunately no one can read them. They're all written in Prothean"

"I tried to help Toss with some ancient texts but none of them have been any help" Oroto added.

Shepard looked at Warren "Do you know where the beacon is?" she asked

"The beacon was moved this morning to a nearby spaceport" Warren stated "Manuel and I stayed here to pack up and help Toss and Oroto prepare to move the pod and data we found. That was when the attack came. We sealed ourselves in here while the Marines defended us. They saved us."

Manuel looked unstable "No one is safe" he said to himself "the age of humanity is ending. Soon only ruin and corpses will remain."

Shepard looked at the man "What's wrong with him?" she asked

Warren sighed "He got very close to the beacon and he looked to be in a gaze." She claimed "We don't know what happened but we're all worried about what the beacon has."

"Not long after they got back, the Geth attacked" Toss added "We feared that they were looking for the Pod but the man who was leading them only asked one of the marines where the beacon was. He didn't know about the pod."

"Who was leading these Geth?" Ashley asked

Manuel spoke up again "Agents of the Destroyers. Bringers of Darkness. Heralds of our extinction"

Warren sighed and tried to calm Manuel down "We didn't know who it was but it wasn't a Geth at all. It was a Turian."

That coughed everyone shocked. They were now wondering about Nihlus, was he working for these Geth and was he a traitor "What did this Turian look like."

"I managed to get a look at him out of the window" Oroto stated "He had pale white skins along with a robotic arm and leg."

Kaidan looked relieved "That can't be Nihlus" he stated "He doesn't look like that."

"I'll call him and see if he knows who is behind this." Shepard stated and she activated her Comm. "Nihlus are you there?" she called but there was no answer "We've secured the Pod but these scientists are saying that there is another Turian here." There was still no response "Nihlus come in." Still nothing "Damn it, he's not responding, we better go find him."

"We'll stay here and guard the Pod" Warren stated "When this is over we'll take Manuel to a doctor."

Shepard, Kaidan and Ashley left the building and sealed the door again and then they walked over the hill. They hoped that maybe when they found Nihlus, they would be able to find out who this other Turian was.

…

At the same time as when Shepard was with the scientists, Nihlus had reached the spaceport and saw another Turian standing nearby. He emerged from his hiding place and pointed his rifle at him. But then his eyes widened and he lowered his weapon in shock "Saren!" he gasped. This Turian was older than Nihlus with white skin. His left arm was also a cybernetic along with one of his legs. Saren had been Nihlus' mentor before Nihlus had joined the Spectres.

"Nihlus" Saren turned around and greeted back

Nihlus looked confused "This isn't your mission Saren, what are you doing here?"

"The council thought that you could use some help with this one" Saren replied and then he walked behind him and Nihlus didn't see him draw his pistol.

"I wasn't expecting to find Geth here." Nihlus stated "The situation is worse than I thought."

Saren smirked "Don't worry, I got it all control" he pointed the pistol at Nihlus and before Nihlus could react, Saren pulled the trigger and blasted Nihlus in the shoulder.

Nihlus gasped and collapsed to the floor and looked at Saren in shock "Saren, why?" he gasped

"Someone had to make a choice" Saren responded "The Republic is a major threat to the Galaxy and someone had to make sure they're stopped."

"You're mad!" Nihlus gasped "You may have started a war that will see no end."

"Actually, I've preventing a war." Saren stated "When they return, this galaxy will see peace."

"When who returns?" Nihlus demanded as he coughed up blood.

"The ones who wiped out the Protheans." Saren responded "The Beacon will help me find it, the Geth were just here to cover my tracks. For what it's worth, I'm sorry that it had to come to this." He then shot Nihlus in the head and the Turian fell silent. Saren smirked and then he walked away and just as he was out of sight, Nihlus' radio started to call as Shepard began asking Nihlus some questioned but Nihlus was already dead.

…

Shepard, Kaidan and Ashley walked over a hill and they stopped for a second when they saw something massive in the distance "What is that thing?" Kaidan asked

It was some strange ship that was bigger than any ship that Shepard had seen. It was the same one that Shepard had seen in the vid during the attack "It's a ship" Ashley stated "Look at the size of it"

They watched as the ship began to lift up into the air and there was red lightning across the hull. Soon it disappeared into the clouds and Shepard decided to carry on. Shepard was also skilled with a sniper and was able to take out a few Geth Scouts that were nearby and they soon came to a new building that was locked. Kaidan quickly hacked the lock and opened the door.

"Everyone stay calm out there!" a voice called as the door opened "We're coming out, we're not armed." Three civilians came out of the building which were two men and a woman.

"Is it safe out here?" the woman asked "Are they gone?"

"You're okay now" Shepard stated "They're gone now; no one is going to hurt you."

One of the men sighed in relief "When I saw those things drag our people and impale them on those spikes, I thought we were next so we hid."

"When we saw the ship we thought we were doomed" the second man said "It must have something to do with that beacon. That thing has been nothing but trouble for us. I can't get that sound out of my head"

Ashley looked at them "What sound, what do you mean?"

The woman looked at them "After the ship arrived it was making some kind of strange noise." She stated "We believe it might be controlling the Geth and those spikes. But whatever it was, we can't get that noise out of our heads."

"What about that Turian who the scientists saw leading the attack?" Kaidan asked

The first man spoke up "We saw some Turian with a metal arm leading the Geth." He stated "They had some sort of explosive that he ordered to be set near the beacon."

Ashley gasped in horror "They're going to blow up the spaceport" she gasped "We've got to stop them."

"Then let's move out" Shepard stated

But before they left, the second man looked at the first man "Hey Cole, we're just farmers, they're soldiers, maybe we should give the stuff to them."

The man known as Cole glared at him "Blake!" he hissed "Sometimes you need to learn to keep your mouth shut!"

Shepard narrowed her eyes at Cole "You have something to tell me Cole?" she questioned

Cole sighed "Some of the guys at the spaceport ran a small smuggling ring" he admitted "It was nothing major but in exchange for some of the profits, we agreed to let them store some of their wares in our sheds."

Shepard shook her head "Smuggling is against the law." She told them firmly "It's a good thing that we've got more important things to deal with."

"Well we weren't hurting anyone" Cole protested "We thought that it might come in handy. This pistol was one thing that we had and we thought we could use it to defend ourselves. But you'll have better use of it" he handed Shepard a pistol which she gave to Kaidan as it was a better quality than Kaidan's pistol.

"We should give them the rest as well" the woman stated

Cole sighed "You're right" he admitted "We also have this scanner as well. I was going to sell it but you'll have better use of it"

Ashley glared at Cole "Who's your contact at the spaceport Cole?" she demanded "What's his name"

"He's not a bad guy" Cole protested "I don't want to get him in trouble. Besides, I'm not a snitch."

"He might have something to do with this attack" Shepard reasoned "Or he might have some more information that could help us. We need his name."

Cole sighed "His name is Powell" he stated "He works at the spaceport if he's still alive. There's a large number of Geth heading there."

Shepard nodded "I have to go" she stated "We need to find Nihlus, recover the beacon and disable those bombs."

...

Shepard, Kaidan and Ashley soon arrived at the Spaceport but once again, they were attacked by the Geth and some of those Husk creatures though they quickly managed to take care of them. But then they saw a shocking sight, it was a Turian lying on the ground and wasn't moving. Kaidan quickly ran over to him and gasped "Commander, it's Nihlus!" he stated

"Is he alright?" Ashley asked

Kaidan shook his head "He's dead, shot in the shoulder and in the head. But the angel of the gunshot shows that he was on the ground when he was shot in the head. And this damage wasn't done by a Geth weapon. Who could have done this?"

"Could it have been that other Turian we were warned about?" Shepard questioned.

Ashley then heard a noise nearby "Commander, something's moving over behind those crates."

The three of them pointed their weapons towards the crate "Come out from there or we will shoot!" Shepard ordered.

A man quickly came up from behind the crates "Wait, don't shoot!" he called "I'm one of you, I'm human."

Shepard sighed in frustration as she lowered her rifle "Sneaking up on us like that is a good way to get yourself killed!" she hissed

The man sighed "I'm sorry, I was hiding from those creatures. My name is Powell; I saw what happened to that Turian. The other one shot him."

"I need to know how Nihlus died." Shepard stated

Powell looked at Nihlus' body "He came up here and looked at the other Turian. He recognised him, he called him Saren, and they knew each other. Your friend here relaxed and then Saren shot him in the shoulder. He taunted him about how he was working with the ones who wiped out the Protheans and he would stop the Republic who he saw as a threat and then he shot your Turian friend in the head. I'm lucky that he didn't see me, I was hiding behind these crates."

Kaidan looked at Powell "We were told a Prothean beacon came through here, what happened to it?" he asked

"The workers took that beacon to the other platform" Powell told them "It's probably where that guy Saren is going to. He hoped on the cargo train after he killed your friend. But I also saw his Geth carry explosives with him. He's going to blow the Spaceport. It's vital for the colony; it's where all of our outer world supplies come from, where we get our farming equipment. If this spaceport is destroyed then the colony could follow. This all started because of that beacon, first the mother ship showed up, then the Geth..." he gave a few deep breaths "They killed everyone, they would have killed me too if I wasn't hiding behind these crates."

"How come no one else decided to hide behind the crates?" Kaidan asked

Powell sighed "Look, I've had a long day and I was tired so I thought I would get a quick nap. I wasn't expecting that ship to show up while I was sleeping."

"Wait, you mean you only survived because you were lazy?" Kaidan hissed "You were hiding behind the crates before the attack."

"I guess I was just lucky" Powel stated

Ashley then remembered something "I remember that name Powel, you're the one Cole told us about, the contact for the Smuggling ring."

Powell sighed "So you figured it out" he stated "Well what does it matter now, yes I am a Smuggler but who cares right now. My supervisor's dead, my entire team's dead so it doesn't really matter now."

"Do you have anything hidden that could help us fight the Geth?" Shepard questioned

"There was a shipment of Grenades that came last week." Powell stated "I took a few of them but only enough that it wasn't noticed."

"Those weapons could have helped us marines against the Geth!" Ashley snapped

"Hey, it was just a few, it wouldn't have made much difference" Powell protested "The crate is just here"

"Leave him Ashley!" Shepard ordered "He's not worth it."

Powel sighed "My smuggling days are over, I swear it."

Shepard looked at him "A lot of good marines died today Powel, those Grenades could have helped them, if I were you, I would think of some way to make it up to them."

Powell nodded "Okay, maybe there was something else I was saving. Could be worth a fortune, experimental tech, top of the line" he handed it to Shepard "Take it, I don't need it, I didn't want anyone to get hurt, I'm sorry." He gave Shepard an grenade upgrade which could make the Grenades even more powerful.

"Come on, we need to get to that Beacon before it's too late" Shepard told Kaidan and Ashley and then they went over to the Cargo train. When they got there, they saw that the train was overrun with Geth including a Geth Prime and a few snipers. The three of them had to take cover to avoid getting shot but they were able to take them out but it took some time, time which was running short.

...

Meanwhile, Saren was on another platform and he turned towards a white coloured Geth "Set the charges" he ordered "Destroy the entire colony, leave no evidence that we were here." The Geth left with some others and Saren turned around and saw the Prothean Beacon that was found and it had a beam of light shooting into the sky. Saren walked towards it and stared at the beacon. Then the beacon began making noises and Saren was lifted into the air and he began to see what secrets the Beacon held.

...

The Cargo train arrived with Ashley, Kaidan and Shepard. They found the first bomb that they had been warned about and thanks to Kaidan, they were quickly able to disarm it.

"Quickly, we need to find them all." Ashley stated

Kaidan looked at the scanner that they had received from Cole "My scanner is detecting three more bombs, both are close by. They're just across the bridge." The three of them ran up the stairs and crossed the bridge to the other side of the tracks. There they found the second bomb and disarmed it. But the path to the third one was blocked by a few Geth including another Sniper but thanks to Powell's grenades, they were able to quickly clear a path and disarm the third bomb. The last bomb was right near the platform where the beacon was but Kaidan was able to lift the Geth into the air using his biotics and then Ashley shot them. They quickly made it to the last bomb and disarmed it.

"That's the last bomb" Ashley stated "Now we must secure the beacon, Powell stated that it's on the platform which is just through here."

"I just hope that this Saren person hasn't taken it." Shepard stated

Thankfully, the beacon was still at the platform when they arrived. There were a few more of those Husks but they were quickly destroyed. When it was all clear, they looked at the beacon and were confused at the strange green bean that the beacon was emitting. But Shepard knew that they had to secure the beacon and she radioed the Normandy "Normandy, this is Commander Shepard; the beacon is secure, request immediate evac."

Kaidan meanwhile walked closer to the beacon "This is amazing" he stated "An actual piece of working Prothean technology. Unbelievable."

Ashley looked at the beam of light "It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up" she claimed "It must have been activated at some point."

Ashley walked over to Shepard but then Kaidan began walking closer to the beacon and Shepard got a response from the Normandy "Roger Normandy" she replied "Standing by."

Kaidan then got very close to the beacon and then the beacon started glowing brighter making Kaidan widen his eyes "Err, what just happened?" he questioned and then he started feeling himself being pulled towards the beacon "Commander!"

Shepard gasped as she watched Kaidan quickly getting pulled towards the beacon. She quickly ran and tackled Kaidan from the side knocking him aside. But then Shepard was pulled towards the beacon. She was lifted into the air and gazed at the beacon. The beacon seemed to be sending what was stored inside into Shepard. Shepard widened her eyes as she heard a loud ringing noise and saw images. They seemed to be of some kind of creature fighting machines.

"Shepard!" Kaidan gasped as Ashley helped him up. He tried to run to help but Ashley held him back.

"No don't touch her!" she warned "It's too dangerous!"

The ringing got louder and more images began entering Shepard's mind. But then the beacon glowed even more and exploded throwing Shepard backwards. Kaidan and Ashley ran over to her and rolled her onto her back. Kaidan felt her and found a pulse, she was alive but unconscious. But they were all wondering what that beacon had done to her.

...

Meanwhile, far from Eden Prime, the mothership that had landed on Eden Prime was moving through space with no planets nearby. Saren was on board the ship and he sat down thinking of what he will do next. Then he was approached by a woman who wore a black dress and a black headdress which covered most of her head "We identified the ship that touched down on Eden Prime" the woman told Saren "It was the RSV Normandy, a Republic vessel. It was under the commander of Captain Anderson, they managed to save the colony."

Saren let out a loud roar when he heard that name and then he asked "And the beacon?"

"One of the humans may have used it." The woman claimed "Which means they have the information as well. Also they also found a Prothean stasis pod so they also have a living Prothean."

Saren let out a few angry growls at this and he stormed up from his seat "The human and the Prothean must be eliminated." He ordered and then he walked away.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes, another chapter down, I created a few minor characters so that this story would not just be a novelization of the Mass effect games. I might even bring back these minor characters later on as they were never seen again in the games. I also want to answer a few questioned I got. First of all, the Normandy is meant to have a mixed race crew but it's only human at the minute since it's only running on a skeleton crew. That will be sorted in a few chapters time. Also, I am bringing in a few Star Wars characters such as Thrawn, Tarkin and Pellaeon. However, I have never played Halo before so bring Hood in would be difficult since I don't understand Halo. But I am thinking of bringing in characters from the new Starlink game although some will have a different race. One last thing, the Resurgence class Dreadnought actually looks like the Imperial Class Star Destroyer in the Star Wars series, not the Resurgence Class from the sequel films. But I felt like Imperial was not a good name since this is not an Empire. **


	5. Citadel Part 1

**The Citadel:**

Shepard groaned as she opened her eyes. Her head felt like it was splitting apart and she couldn't see clearly because of the light. Eventually her eyes adjusted to the light and she could start hearing again. She started hearing the voice of Kaidan.

"Doctor Chakwas?" Kaidan called "I think she's waking up."

Shepard pushed herself into a seating position and sat on the side of her bed. She them place her hand to her head as she felt a massive headache. She then looked around and saw that she was in some kind of infirmary but it was not on the Normandy because this infirmary was much bigger than the one that was on the Normandy. She then saw a medical droid standing nearby alongside Doctor Chakwas and Kaidan.

Chakwas walked up to her "You had us worried there Shepard" she stated "how are you feeling?"

Shepard groaned "I feel like my head is about to split apart." She stated "Where are we, this does not look like the Normandy."

"It's not" Kaidan stated "We're on board the RSV Eviscerator, Admiral Versio's flagship. Captain Anderson and Admiral Versio wanted to speak with you when you first woke up."

"You've been out for about fifteen hours" Chakwas stated "You were not moving when we first brought you on board, we think something must have happened with the beacon."

Kaidan sighed "It's my fault Commander" he apologized "I must have trigged some kind of security field when I approached it. You pushed me out of the way but then it targeted you. We don't know what happened but then the beacon overloaded and it exploded. There's nothing left of it now."

"What about the Prothean Stasis Pod?" Shepard asked

"That's still fine" Kaidan stated "It was taken to the Normandy in order to be transported to the Citadel."

"We don't if it was Kaidan who set the security field off" Chakwas stated "But we'll never find out now. Physically you're fine but I was detective quite a lot of brain activity. We suspect that the beacon may have given it's memory to you. What did you see?"

Shepard sighed "I don't know what I saw" she stated "Death? Destruction? It wasn't really clear but it was some kind of vision."

"I better add this to my report" Chakwas stated and then the door opened and two people entered the room "Oh, Captain Anderson and Admiral Versio."

Shepard saw her captain along with a middle aged man with greying hair. This man was Admiral Garrick Versio, leader of the 63rd task force. Garrick Versio was a colonist from the planet of Vardos and he had been a raw recruit when Vardos had been attacked by Batarian Pirates during the Verge war. Vardos had been a small colony that had only a small defence fleet but Versio had been able to take command and defeat these Batarians and even capture a Batarian cruiser that was later used as a strike vessel. This victory caused Vardos to become an official colony and gain a seat on the Senate and Versio became known as the Hero of Vardos and gain a high position in the military and become an Admiral. Versio had one daughter called Iden Versio who works for the Republic Secret Intelligence.

"How is my XO doing?" Anderson asked

The medical droid spoke up. These medical droids were programmed to help doctors with their patients if they were be overwhelmed. This droid was a 2-1B model which was a very popular medical droid in the Republic "She's physically fine" the medical droid stated in a male voice "But mentally, she is not."

"The readings are normal now though" Chakwas stated "She should be able to return to her duties."

"That is good" Versio stated "We were hoping she could tell us more about what happened down there."

"Thanks to your efforts Shepard as well as Alenko and Williams, Eden Prime is safe" Anderson stated

"However the 63rd task force has been damaged." Versio stated "I've lost the entire Vanguard to the Geth as well as that Warship and the Dreadnought Hydra was badly when that mothership came back from the surface."

"So what's going to happen now?" Shepard asked.

"We've radioed Arcturus and I've been ordered to return so my task force can make repairs and rearm." Versio stated "Admiral Firmus Piett and the 75th task force will replace us here and the other Republic Fleets have been put on standby in order to prepare for battle in case there are any more attacks. I should get back to the Bridge and prepare to return when Piett gets here." Versio then left.

Anderson looked at Shepard "Meanwhile the Normandy will be going to the Citadel to deliver the Prothean pod as well as our report to the council" Anderson stated "And that's something I need to talk to you about, things look bad, Nihlus is dead, the beacon is destroyed and an Republic colony has been attack. Things could get out of hand fast, the Senate and the council will want answers and the person who lead this attack is a big problem."

"Do you know him?" Shepard asked

Anderson nodded "I do" he replied "This Turian known as Saren is one of the council's best Spectres and they won't like what he has been accused of. The Council will take Saren's side and this could increase the already tense relationship in the Senate. Some will see the Council's support of Saren as a reason to start going against Chancellor Mothma so this is a major problem. We have footage of Saren on Eden Prime but he will just claim that the Council sent him as back up. Saren hates the Republic and believes that we are a blight on the Galaxy. Many years ago shortly after the Shanxi War, Saren worked with several Republic agents including me and we investigated an illegal AI research outpost. Saren got many Civilians killed and tried to blame me for it but reports proved that he was behind it. Saren is not well liked at all in the Republic for what he did."

"So what do we do?" Shepard asked

"When we get to the Citadel, we are to meet with Ambassador Udina" Anderson stated "He will have ideas on what to do. But before we head back to the Normandy, I need to ask what you saw. I overheard you talking about some sort of vision. What did you see?"

"I saw Synthetics, Geth maybe" Shepard claimed "They were slaughtering people, butchering them."

"That might have something to do with the disappearance of the Protheans" Anderson stated "But right now, we need to find out why Saren did this. We should return to the Normandy and then we will report to the Council."

"What are we going to tell them?" Shepard asked "That I had a bad dream?"

"We don't know what information was stored in that Beacon" Anderson stated "It could be lost Porthean technology or blueprints for a weapon of mass Destruction. But whatever it was, Saren took it. I know Saren, his ways and his politics, he has the secrets from the Beacon, he has an army of Geth under his command and he won't stop until he's wiped the Republic from the face of the galaxy."

"We'll stop him somehow" Shepard stated

"Let#s just hope that we can do this without going to war." Anderson stated "No matter what the council say the Senate will declare Saren guilty and want his head. If this isn't handled right it could lead to war which we want to avoid. We should all head back to the Normandy now so we can prepare what we're going to say." Then Anderson left along with Shepard, Kaidan and Chakwas.

...

Soon they were all back on the Normandy and were leaving the rest of the Sixth fleet and Eden Prime behind. Joker was with Luke as they prepared the Jump to Hyperspace to get to the Citadel. "Captain we've contacted Citadel control and informed them that we shall be arriving in about 3 hours." Joker told Anderson over the radio

"Good Joker" Anderson replied "Contact the Embassy and inform them that we'll be meeting with them before we speak with the council."

"Will do" Joker replied back and then he went back to the controls "Co-ordinates for Citadel are in, preparing the Jump to Lightspeed. Jumping in three, two, one." Then he and Luke pulled the switch and the Normandy then jumped to Lightspeed.

In the lower decks, Shepard had decided to meet with Ashley and she found her near the droid station where the small Astrodroids were kept until they were needed.

"Hey Commander" Ashley greeted "The captain decided to bring me with you. I'm glad that you're okay. We could all do with some good news after what happened on Eden Prime. Kaidan told me about Jenkins. I'm sorry about him, I know how it feels to lose a comrade. I lost several on Eden Prime."

Jenkins was a good soldier" Shepard replied "He'll be missed, he was a valuable part of this crew."

"I feel a bit guilty" Ashley stated as she lowered her head "If Jenkins was still alive I might not be here."

Shepard smiled at her "You're a good soldiers Williams" she stated "You belong on the Normandy"

"Thank you Commander" Ashley replied "I appreciate that. I've seen friends die before but I've never seen my whole unit wiped out not to mention all those Civilians who were turned into those... things. This might take some time for me to recover and it would have gotten worse if you hadn't shown up."

"We couldn't have done this mission without you Williams" Shepard replied "You're going to fit around here just fine."

"Thanks Commander" Ashley said

...

A few hours later, the Normandy exited Lightspeed in the Widow System. This system had no planets but it was home to the Citadel, a giant space station that was said to have been built by the Protheans. A Mass relay was nearby which linked to many other systems. Despite the agreement between the Republic and the Citadel, the Council species had been unable to build their hyperdrives so that they could travel into lightspeed without the Mass Relays. One reason for this is that the Republic Hyperdrives did not work with the ships that the Citadel Species already used and there had been one attempt that destroyed a Turian cruiser.

On the Bridge of the Normandy, Joker along with Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan looked out of the window as they approached the Citadel. The Citadel was the biggest structure that they had ever seen. Arcturus Station was large but it wasn't as big as the Citadel or as well population due to how new it was. They all gazed at the Citadel Defence fleet that waited near the Citadel. Many of the ships were Turian design since they provided most of the Citadel's military support. The Salarians and Asari also gave some of their ships with the Salarians giving some of their strike vessels and the Asari giving some of their own larger warships. The Citadel Fleet is said to have enough ships to patrol every mass relay from the Citadel to the Terminus Systems.

Ashley was staring at one of the ships "Look at the size of that ship" She stated. The ship she was looking at was much bigger than any other ship in the Citadel fleet and was the biggest ship she had ever seen. It was an Asari Dreadnought and the biggest ship made at nearly 4 kilometers tall from the bottom to the top.

"That's the Destiny Ascension" Kaidan stated "The Flagship of the Citadel Fleet. A starship of stunning power and it holds a crew of 10,000. That's much too big for the Republic, tours don't even cover half of the ship because it's so big."

"Well size isn't everything" Joker stated "You need firepower too."

Luke then went to the radio "Citadel Control this is RSV Normandy requesting permission to dock."

"Permission granted" the Citadel Control said over the Radio "Welcome to the Citadel, Ambassador Udina is waiting for you at the Republic Embassy. Please head to Dock 422."

Shepard looked at Kaidan and Ashley "Well we better get ready" she told them "I just hope that we are able to perform our mission here and prove that Saren is a threat."

Shepard then left as she prepared to get ready while Joker arrived at the docking bay and the ship was then held in place by magnetic anchors.

...

After the Normandy had docked, Kaidan, Ashley, Sheppard and Anderson made their way down to the Embassies. The Embassies were where every Citadel Species that did not have a seat on the council would give their complaints to the Council. The Republic had their own large Embassy with offices for each Republic Species and it was next to some of the other Embassies.

The races that already had a seat on the council did not have an embassy but there were three species that did have an embassy. The race that had an Embassy the longest were the Volus. The Volus were a small species that were not very tall and hailed from the planet of Irune, the Volus also had to wear special environmental suits because they lived on a planet that had a mostly Ammonia based atmosphere, something that would kill most species. They were also a client species of the Turians and while not very good a combat, they were skilled pilots and often helped pilot star ships. They also handled a lot of the Citadel's finances however despite all their work, they had never been given a seat on the council which has annoyed some Volus.

Another species that had an Embassy were the Elcor. The Elcor were quite large and had four legs so they were unable to carry weapons bit sometimes carried large cannons on their backs. Their homeworld of Dekuuna was a high gravity world where a simple fall could kill you. The final species were known as the Hanar which looked like very large jellyfish. They came from the planet Kahje which had 90% ocean covering the world. The Hanar were also very religious and viewed the Protheans as their gods. But of all the Citadel species, that Hanar were the most isolated as they were reluctant to deal with other species and because they were mainly an aquatic species, it was difficult for them to live on most worlds.

Two other species once had an Embassy but they didn't anymore. The Quarian's embassy was closed after the creation of the Geth and they were exiled from the Citadel and the Batarians closed their Embassy and left Citadel space after the Council refused to limit the Republic's advanced in the Skyllian Verge. Even today, the Volus and the Elcor had to share an Embassy.

Anderson and the others eventually arrived at the Human office in the Republic Embassy and they saw the human ambassador Donnel Udina waiting for them but also another human who looked to be quite old. When the man turned around, Shepard saw the man's face, he was old which could be seen due to his white hair and bushy moustache. He wore a white uniform with a rank plaque that three red squares followed by three blue that showed his rank as a colonel.

Anderson recognised him "Colonel Yularen, I wasn't expecting you to be here."

The older man was Colonel Wullf Yularen. He had been the man in charge of the Second Fleet during the Shanxi War and had defeated the Turians in the battle which made him a hero to the Republic. After the War, he decided to leave the navy and would be one of the people who would form the Republic Secret Intelligence to help keep the Republic secure from outside threats. Yularen would make his secret service to be like the Citadel Spectres and this would make Yularen a very important member of the Republic.

Yularen shook Anderson's hand "Chancellor Mon Mothma decided that I should try and help find evidence to prove that Saren is guilty."

"And that is going to be important" Udina stated "We need to meet with the council with proper evidence that can prove that Saren is guilty otherwise they won't revoke his Spectre Status."

"And do we have anything that can get us the evidence?" Shepard asked

"I know someone who can" Yularen stated "There is a C-Sec officer called Garrus Vakarian who has been investigating Saren's activities. He might be able to give us the evidence we need and my agents said that he was close to finding something on Saren."

"So where can we find him?" Kaidan asked

"I have a contact in C-Sec who can help track down Garrus" Udina stated "His name is Harkin"

Anderson snorted "Forget it!" he hissed "They suspended Harkin last month for drinking on the job, I won't waste my time with that loser."

"We need to find that evidence Anderson" Udina stated

"And it might be best if you stepped aside Captain" Yularen stated "The council might use your past with Saren as a reason to ignore what we find. Shepard and her team should handle this."

Shepard looked at them "So where can we find this Harkin?" she asked "And what can you tell me of him?"

"When the Republic and Council met each other, part of the peace between us was to allow races from both governments to settle on each other's base. Citadel Security is the police here and Harkin was one of the first to join" Anderson stated "He was the first but not the best, he is an embarrassment to us. Roughing us suspects in custody, bribary accusations, alcohol and Drug use. The embassy used to step in when he got in trouble, being the first human in C-Sec was important but soon we no longer needed to protect him. He's probably drinking away in Chora's den, a small drinking location in the wards. Head to the elevator near the Citadel tower which will take you to the Wards, then turn right towards the shops and down some stairs. That will take you to Chora's den."

"Well we better head there now and hopefully Harkin will still be there." Ashley stated

"Good luck Commander" Yularen stated and then Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan left.

...

Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan followed Anderson's directions and soon they arrived at the market place. But they soon entered the back allies where Chora's den was and they were suddenly fired upon. The three of them ducked behind a barrier. Ashley and Shepard pulled out their Assault rifles and began firing at their attackers. Kaidan quickly used his biotic powers to lift the attackers in the air where Ashley and Shepard finished them off.

When the fight was over, Ashley looked at the bodies "Looks like Saren has sent his people after us." She stated

"They were most likely sent by Saren since they were waiting for us" Shepard claimed "But we have no evidence to prove that. We should find Harkin and then go."

"Agreed" Kaidan stated "I don't like the look of this place at all."

The three of them entered Chora's den and they could see that this was a place where shady characters would hang out. There were people dancing in a very sexual way and they lights were very dim. At the back of the room, they could see three Krogan who were in an argument.

The Krogan were a war loving race from the planet Tuchanka which had been ruined many years ago by the Krogan. During the Rachni wars hundreds of years ago, the Salarians uplifted the Krogan to help fight the Rachni and eventually drove the insect race into extinction. But the Krogan were very aggressive and soon War broke out between the Council and the Krogan clans. This war only ended with help from the Turians who had the Salarians develop a biochemical weapon known as the Genophage which make it difficult for the Krogan to breed so it limited their reproduction and the Krogan were forced to surrender. They were still a very violent species so they often were mercenaries or pirates but they were still very skilled fighters and sometimes performed contracts for the Republic.

One Krogan seemed to be arguing with the other two who seemed to be the Bouncers here. This Krogan was a red head and several scars on his face "Back off Wrex!" the bouncer snapped at this Krogan "Fist told us to take you down if you show up."

"What are you waiting for?" the Krogan known as Wrex demanded "I'm standing right here. This is Fist's only chance, if he's smart, he'll take it."

The Bouncer glared at him "He's not coming out Wrex!" he snapped "End of Story!"

"This story is just beginning" Wrex claimed and then he walked away past Shepard "Out of my way humans, I have no quarrel with you."

When he was gone Kaidan looked at Shepard "What was that about?" he questioned

"I don't know" Shepard replied "But I don't think this has anything to do with Saren so we'll just let that Krogan deal with whatever problem he has."

Ashley looked at Shepard "Commander, I see Harkin, he's just sat over there."

Commander saw Harkin who clearly had seen better days sat at a table. Harkin looked at her and chuckled "Republic military." he said to himself "We don't see many of those here, I could have been a marine myself but instead I joined the security here. Biggest mistake I ever made."

"So you're Harkin" Shepard stated "I was told that you might be able to help me. I need to find a C-Sec officer known as Garrus"

"So I guess that this has something to do with Saren?" Harkin stated "Garrus was close to finding something but then Executor Pallin stopped his investigation but Garrus still did it. I know where Garrus is, he said that some Quarian had evidence that proved Saren was responsible for what happened on Eden Prime and that Quarian went to see Dr Michel. She has an office on the other side of the wards here. If you hurry you may catch up with him there."

"Well at least we know where to find him now" Shepard stated "We'll go know so we can find him."

"Yeah go!" Harkin grumbled "And let me drink in peace."

...

Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan left Chora's den and they went back up to the market and they soon made their way across towards and office and they quickly entered. They saw a Turian who they assumed war Garrus hiding from sight and they could see why. There was a human female who was Dr Michel being assaulted by several thugs but these thugs didn't seemed interested in money.

"I didn't tell anyone I swear!" Michel cried

"That was smart Doc" the lead Thug sneered and he grabbed Michel's shoulder "Now if Garrus comes around, you stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or we'll..." but then he stopped Shepard and her team enter and he grabbed Michel and pointed his pistol at Shepard "Who are you?"

Shepard pulled out her own pistol "Let her go!" she demanded

Before a fight could break out, Garrus came out from his hiding spot and shot the lead Thug releasing Michel. Then Ashley and Shepard shot the other two.

When the fight was over, Garrus looked at Shepard "Thanks for that" he stated "That was perfect timing, you distracted him and allowed me to get a clean shot. This was much easier since I'm a good shot" he then looked at Dr Michel "Are you alright Doctor, did they hurt you?"

"No, I'm okay" Michel stated "Thanks to all of you."

Garrus looked at Shepard "Now I know who you are Commander Shepard" he stated "You're Commander Jane Alice Shepard, I was able to read your file thanks to my position in C-Sec. I know why you're here and I hope I can help stop Saren."

Ashley looked at Garrus "I didn't think a Turian would be so keen to take down Saren since he's one of your species."

"Just because Saren is a Turian doesn't mean every Turian likes him" Garrus stated "I respect the Spectres for what they do but Saren is too extreme and he causes too many unnecessary deaths. That's not how a Spectre should act, he stains both the Spectres and the Turians."

Kaidan looked at Garrus "We were told that you were looking for a Quarian who claimed to have information on Saren."

Garrus nodded "It's rare for a Quarian to come to the Citadel so it caught my attention. This Quarian came here after she was attacked by a group of Thugs and I hoped to get more information."

Michel looked at her "This Quarian came into my office a few days ago, she had been shot and she looked scared, probably on the run. She asked me about the Shadow Broker, she wanted to trade information in exchange for a safe place to hide."

"So where is she now?" Shepard asked

"I put her in contact with Fist" Michel stated "He's an agent for the Shadow Broker."

Garrus shook his head "Not anymore he's not." He claimed "He works for Saren now, that's probably why Fist's Thugs didn't want you to tell us about the Quarian because of this evidence she has. The Shadow Broker isn't too thrilled about one of his agents turning rogue."

The Shadow Broker was a mysterious individual, no one knew who he or she was but he trades information to the highest bidder. Some call him a necessary evil in the galaxy and his information has been important to the Citadel so they let this Broker operate.

Michel was shocked about that "You mean Fist actually betrayed the Shadow Broker!" she gasped "That's crazy, all the agents know what happens when you betray the Shadow Broker. Saren must have made him quite the offer."

Kaidan had a though "Hey Commander, do you think that could be why that Krogan was trying to get Fist earlier?" he questioned

Garrus did know the answer "I see that you've met Wrex" he stated "The Shadow Broker hired him to eliminate Fist for his betrayal. C-Sec wanted to arrest him but they're all too scared of him. Wrex never leaves a job unfinished. That information must link Saren to the Geth."

Shepard looked at Michel "Did the Quarian say what data she had?" she asked

"She did" Michel answered "She said that the information she was going to trade had something to do with the Geth."

"We cannot ignore this" Garrus stated "With that evidence we can prove that Saren has gone rogue. The council will not be able to ignore this."

"I think it's time we pay Fist a visit" Shepard stated

"This is your show Commander but I want to bring Saren down as well. I'm coming with you." Garrus stated

"We could use your help" Shepard replied

"Thanks Commander" Garrus stated "And before we go to find Fist, maybe we should go find Wrex. He has got a contract for him and he is a skilled warlord. He might be useful in this."

"Having a Krogan wouldn't hurt Commander" Kaidan stated

"Yeah but I'm worried that he might start a fight with our crew." Ashley stated "Krogan have really bad tempers."

"Having a Krogan might come in handy if we need extra muscle" Shepard commented and she looked at Garrus "Do you know where we can find him?"

Garrus nodded "The last time I heard from him, he was at C-Sec academy. You can get there fast by just taking the elevator nearby. We just need to go down the stairs. Having him might also keep C-Sec off of him as Fist has been claiming that he has been making threats and a fight might break out if C-Sec try to arrest him.

"Well then let's go" Shepard stated "We need to find Wrex and then get to Fist before we lose the Quarian."

The group of four then left in order to carry on their mission.

...

The trip to C-Sec Academy didn't take long. This Academy was where citizens of all races were trained to become members of the Citadel Security. It was their job to protect the citizens of the Citadel like the police do back on Earth. They also shut down smugglers and illegal arms trade that goes on at the Citadel. Even though the Republic was not a member of the council, their races were still trained to become C-Sec officers although some people didn't like that.

As soon as they entered the Academy, they found Wrex who was arguing with a few C-Sec officers. "Witnesses saw you making threats at Fist's bar. Stay away from him" one officer ordered

"I don't take orders from you!" Wrex growled

"This is your only warning Wrex!" the officer growled back

The two glared at each other hard "You should warn Fist, I will kill him!"

The Officer stepped back but stood his ground "Do you want me to arrest you?" he questioned

"I want you to try" Wrex laughed then he saw Shepard and walked over to her.

The officer snorted as Wrex walked away "Go on, get out of here!" he snapped before leaving.

Wrex walked up to Shepard "Do I know you human?" he asked

"My name is Shepard" Shepard answered "I'm going after Fist, he has important information that I need. I thought that you might want to come along."

Wrex sighed "Commander Shepard, I've heard a lot about you. I heard how you held off a Batarian attack by yourself, that's a noble thing to do and it has earned you my respect for standing your ground. Out of that respect I will warn you, I am going to kill Fist."

"Fist knows that you're coming" Garrus stated "He may have more guards for one man to handle. If we work together then we might be able to take him down."

Wrex looked at Garrus "My people have a saying. Seek the enemy of your enemy and you will find a friend" he stated and he looked back at Shepard "So yeah, I'll come along."

Shepard shook Wrex's hand "Good to have you on the team Wrex" she said "But before you kill Fist, we need to get the information from him first."

"As you wish" Wrex claimed "Now we should get going before C-Sec try to stop us. Fist isn't going to kill himself." The group of five then left C-Sec Academy and went back up the elevator to the wards.

...

The group of five quickly made their way back to Chora's den so that they could confront Fist and find this Quarian. However something seemed wrong as everything was quite when they arrived at the bar. When they were here just a while ago, the bar had many people drinking or dancing and now it was just empty. No music was being played and no drinks were being served.

"Something's not right here Commander" Kaidan claimed

"Kaidan's right, it's too quiet" Ashley agreed.

They all had their guns out and looked around slowly but as soon as they heard gunfire, they took cover.

"It's an ambush!" Wrex growled "They knew we were coming"

"It seems that I was right about Fist having more guards that one man could handle" Garrus stated "Fist has just cleared his bar so he could prepare for this attack." He then pulled his sniper out "I'll provide cover fire."

Kaidan got his biotics ready "I'll use my biotics to pull them" he stated

"And the rest of us will fire back" Shepard stated "And now!"

Wrex was the first one out of cover and he pulled a large shotgun and shot one thug dead in an instant before he could fight back. Ashley and Shepard used their assault rifles and shot at the others. Garrus fired at the ones in the back with his sniper while Kaidan used his biotics to bring them closer together so they could be shot easier.

Eventually, all of the Thugs were dead and they made it to the back where Kaidan quickly unlocked the door. When the door opened, several warehouse workers put their hands in the air "Wait don't shoot, we're unarmed." One shouted

"We're just workers here, not soldiers" another stated

"Warehouse workers" Garrus stated "All the soldiers must be dead"

Shepard looked at them "Now might be a good time to find a new job."

One worker agreed "Yeah that might be a good idea" he claimed "I never like Fist anyway." Then they left.

Wrex didn't like letting them go "You should have just killed them Commander" he stated "Who knows what they'll do next."

"Shooting people isn't always the answer" Garrus claimed "They should have another chance."

"Let's forget about the works and go find Fist." Shepard stated.

Kaidan opened the next door which turned out to be the door towards Fist's office as they found Fist himself waiting for them "Why do I have to do everything myself!" he grumbled "Time to die little soldiers!" he pressed a button on his deck and two assault drones appeared from below and began firing at them. Wrex had biotic powers and was able to throw the drones against a window where they shattered on impact. Then Ashley shot Fist in the leg causing him to collapse to his knees. Shepard and the others stood over him "Wait, don't kill me, I surrender."

Shepard glared at the man "It's time to talk Fist!" she stated "Where is the Quarian"

"She's not here" Fist claimed "I don't know where she is. That's the truth!"

"Dr Michel said that she sent her to you" Garrus claimed "So where did you send her?"

"She came here with information that she wanted to trade so I said that I would give her a meeting with the Shadow Broker" Fist stated

"That's impossible" Wrex claimed "The Shadow Broker never sees anyone directly. I was contacted through one of his agents."

"The Quarian didn't know that" Fist sneered "So I said that I would set up a meeting but it will be Saren's men waiting for her."

"Where?" Ashley demanded

"I said in the back alleys nearby" Fist claimed "If you hurry then she might still be there."

Wrex them smirked "Well we've got the information we need." He stated "Which means that I can do this now" he pulled his shotgun out and before anyone could react, he shot Fist in the head, killing him in an instant.

"What are you doing?" Garrus shouted

"The Shadow Broker hired me to eliminate his rogue operative." Wrex stated "I never leave a job unfinished."

"Was that really necessary?" Kaidan asked

"If it wasn't me then the Shadow Broker would have hired someone else" Wrex claimed "And you don't want to anger the Shadow Broker."

"We haven't got time for this" Shepard stated "We have to get to the alleys now before Saren's men kill the Quarian."

They all then left the allies but not before Shepard found a data file on Fist's body which might be useful later.

...

The allies weren't far from Chora's den, but more Thugs had arrived so their trip had been delayed. But they soon arrived at the alleys. Thankfully the Quarian was still alive but Saren's men were also there.

"Did you bring it?" a Turian assassin asked the Quarian.

"Where's the Shadow Broker?" the Quarian demanded "Where's Fist?"

"They'll be here" the assassin said as he began stroke the Quarian's arm "Where's the evidence."

The Quarian was smart and could see that something was wrong "No way!" she snapped as she slapped the arm away "The Deal's off."

The Turian didn't look pleased and the other Assassins began surrounding her. But then the Quarian threw a small grenade and caused an explosion which took out two assassins. Then Shepard and her crew made themselves known as Garrus shot the leader in the head with his sniper. Ashley and Shepard then took out the rest.

With the Assassin's dealt with, it was safe for the Quarian now "Fist set me up!" she snapped "I knew I couldn't trust him!"

"Are you alright?" Shepard asked

"I can take care of myself but I do appreciate the help" The Quarian stated "Who are you?"

"My name is Commander Shepard" Shepard replied "We came to you because we were looking for evidence that proves that Saren is guilty for what happened on Eden Prime. We heard that you had that evidence."

"I do" The Quarian replied "My name is Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. I have a chance to repay you for saving my life. But I can't show the evidence here, there might be more assassins about. We need to go somewhere safe."

"We should go back to the Embassy" Ashley suggested "Udina and Yularen will want to hear this evidence."

Shepard looked at Tali "Do you know where the Republic Embassy is?" she asked

Tali shook her head "No, I guess you better lead me there."

"We should get going then" Shepard stated and then the group left the allies so they could give this news to Ambassador Udina.

**Chapter end:**

**Notes, this whole arc was meant to be one chapter but the chapter ended up being too long so I deleted part and placed it on a new chapter. I'm trying to bring in a few side quests from the Citadel into the story which will be seen in the next chapter. But my Exams are coming up and I need to concentrate on them since they are more important.**


	6. Citadel Part 2

**Citadel Part 2:**

Shepard along with Kaidan, Ashley, Garrus, Wrex and their new friend Tali eventually made it back to the Republic Embassy where Udina, Yularen and Anderson were waiting for them. Udina clearly had heard what had been going on and didn't look very happy about it "You're not making my life easy Shepard" he stated "Firefights in the wards, a full on assault on Chora's den? Do you have any idea..." he stopped when he saw Tali.

"Who's the Quarian Shepard?" Yularen asked

"Her name is Tali'Zorah" Shepard answered "And she has evidence that links Saren to the Geth and the attack on Eden Prime."

"Well, you better start at the beginning miss Tali" Udina stated

"We don't see many Quarians" Anderson stated "Why did you leave the Flotilla?"

"I was on my pilgrimage" Tali claimed "My rite of passage into adulthood."

"What's this pilgrimage?" Kaidan asked

Tali looked at him "Every Quarian child leaves the flotilla and returns when they saw something to prove that they are useful to the Flotilla. With our limited resources, we can only accept Quarians who can help the Flotilla survive. We look for resources like food or fuel. Or some kind of useful technology. This was why some Quarians started searching the Republic territory as they were more likely to find something useful that has not been discovered by the Quarians before."

Shepard looked at Tali "So this evidence you found, how does it link Saren to the Geth?" she asked

"During my travels, I began hearing that the Geth attacked Eden Prime" Tali stated "Because the Geth drove my people into exile and that they have never ventured beyond the veil, I was curious. I tracked a patrol of Geth to an uncharted world and I waited for one to get separated from its group. Then I disabled it and took its memory core."

Anderson looked at Tali "I thought the Geth fried their memory cores when they died with some sort of defence mechanism?" he questioned

"They do" Tali replied "But my people built the Geth so we know ways around that. If you're quick, careful and lucky, small caches of data can be saved. Most of the memory core was wiped clean but I did discover something from the Geth unit's audio banks. I'll play it for you now."

Tali activated her Omi tool and her recording played and they heard Saren talk "Eden Prime was a major victory. The beacon had brought us one step closer to finding the conduit."

"That's Saren's voice!" Anderson stated

Yularen smiled "This proves that he was involved in the attack since he spoke about a victory."

Shepard looked at Anderson "He said something about the Conduit, do you know what that means?"

"This conduit must have something to do with the beacon" Anderson claimed "It might be a piece of Prothean technology like a weapon."

Tali then spoke up "Wait, there's more" she stated "Saren wasn't alone in this recording?"

She played the audio again but after Saren spoke about the conduit, a female voice spoke up "And one step closer to the return of the Reapers."

Yularen looked at Tali "I don't recognise the other voice, the one talking about the Reapers. I don't even know what these Reapers are?"

Shepard looked at Anderson "If this beacon is linked to these Reapers then maybe they have something to do with the disappearance of the Protheans."

Tali looked at Shepard "Well from what I found in the memory core, the Reapers were a powerful machine race that existed thousands of years ago. They hunted the Protheans down to extinction and then left. At least that's what the Geth believe."

Yularen looked at Anderson "There is only one person who could tell us. The Prothean in that stasis Pod but it will take time to open it and keep the Prothean alive."

"Even so, this data proves that Saren was behind the attack on Eden Prime" Anderson stated "We have to present this to the council and sort out Saren. Maybe these Reapers don't exist and it's just a fantasy that Saren and the Geth believe."

"I've already arranged a meeting with the council, they should be ready to meet us" Udina stated "Meet me in the Council Tower."

"What about our Quarian friend?" Wrex asked

"My name is Tali!" Tali snapped and she looked at Shepard "You saw me in the alley Commander, you saw what I can do, let me come with you."

"But what about your pilgrimage?" Ashley asked

"The pilgrimage proves that we are willing to give ourselves for the Greater Good." Tali claimed "What does it say about me if I turn my back on this."

"Tali's people built the Geth" Shepard stated "Her knowledge might be useful if we come across anymore. She'll be a valuable member of the team."

"Thank you Commander" Tali stated "You won't regret this"

Udina nodded "Now we better get over to the Citadel Tower and present this evidence." He stated and then he left with Anderson and Shepard's team while Yularen remained behind.

...

They soon arrived at the Council Tower after they took the elevator up. This tower was where the council representatives would meet and talk about Galactic policies or new laws. What happened in this tower had a huge impact on most of the galaxy as the council had influence throughout the territories of all its races. Only the Republic and Terminus Systems had nothing to do with the council.

But there were only three representatives that represented the whole Citadel and they were the three most powerful races in the council space. The Asari were mainly the diplomats of the Citadel, the Salarians gather intelligence and information while the Turians provided most of the security in the Citadel Space. The Asari Councillor was Councillor Tevos, she was a diplomat and compromiser but she was willing to put the welfare of the Asari before the rest of the galaxy. The Salarian representative is Councillor Valern, he had the typical Salarian view of ending wars before they began and was always suspicious of the Republic and what they wanted. However the most aggressive towards the Republic was Councillor Sparatus, the Turian representative. He resented the Republic for being independent and also because the Republic had AIs which he viewed as a danger to the galaxy but he knew he should never anger the Republic too far as even he couldn't deny the strength of the Republic.

The three councillors stepped up to their podium while Udina stepped forward with Shepard and Anderson behind him "Ambassador Udina" Tevos spoke up "This meeting has been called in order to discuss the recent attack on Eden Prime and the accusations that one of our Spectres was behind it."

"A statement made by a man from Eden Prime is not enough" Valern stated "He could be in shock and it could have been any Turian."

Udina smirked "We now have further proof of Saren's involvement. We have an audio recording of Saren speaking about Eden Prime taken from a Geth unit."

"An Audio recording of Saren?" Sparatus questioned "Play this recording."

Udina activated the audio which Tali had given them and Saren's confession played out along with the other voice. When the recording was over, Udina looked at them "You wanted proof, there it is."

Even Sparatus couldn't deny this "This evidence is irrefutable Ambassador" he stated "Saren will be stripped of his Spectre status and all efforts will be made to answer for his crimes.

Tevos then spoke up "I recognise the other voice in that recording who was speaking with Saren" she claimed "That's Matriarch Benezia, a well respected Matriarch, what could see be doing with Saren."

"It doesn't matter" Valern claimed "They are behind this attack on a Republic colony and this situation could still escalate to war. I don't want to see that happen. But I'm also interested in these Reapers that she talked about." He looked at Shepard "What do you know of them?"

Shepard sighed "From the data file, the Geth believe that they were responsible for wiping out the Protheans. The beacon we found of Eden Prime gave me a vision of Protheans being wiped out by machines but it wasn't clear. These Reapers may not even exist but the Prothean from the Stasis Pod might know more."

"Regardless of this, Saren has betrayed the Council and attacked Republic territory and must be brought down for this" Tevos claimed "When we unlock the Prothean from the Pod then we can find answers on these Reapers."

"But how are we going to Hunt Saren down?" Valren asked "He could be on the other side of the galaxy by now."

Tevos had a thought "If Saren hadn't interrupted on Eden Prime then the joint mission would have gone better. Maybe we could do it again."

Sparatus was shocked "Wait, you mean a crew of both Citadel and Republic work together on this mission. What's stopped them from using the other as a pawn?"

Tevos looked at Shepard "This Normandy has prototype Stealth technology that can take it to places undetected. And Shepard has proven herself to be skilled at these types of missions. Maybe we should let her handle it."

Sparatus was shocked "But she's not even a Council species or even a Spectre and we can't make her one since the humans are not a council species. It's too soon anyway."

Valren had a suggestion "Why don't we assign another Spectre to work with her?"

Udina was a bit worried "We'll have to discuss that with Chancellor Mon Mothma, she'll decide whether or not we can allow another Spectre to join us." He then looked at Shepard "I'll have to discuss this in private, meet me back at the Embassy in a few hours."

"I'll see you then." Shepard stated as she walked away with the rest of her team and Anderson.

...

Shepard went to the sides to talk with her team "Well I'm glad that the council listen to our evidence" Kaidan stated

"I'm glad that we've uncovered Saren's crimes" Garrus smiled "He has a lot to answer for."

"Well we've got a few hours before we have to meet with the Ambassador" Tali stated "So what should we do? I don't know anything around here."

Wrex had a suggestion "We could see if we can find anything else from the consort." He suggested.

"The Consort?" Ashley questioned

"The Asari Sha'ira can give advice to people." Wrex stated "She may have something she can offer."

Garrus then saw something "Hey, what's that Salarian doing to the Keepers?" he questioned

Shepard turned around and saw a Salarian looked like he was scanning one of the Keepers. These Keepers were an insect race that live on the Citadel and had been here ever since the Asari had discovered the station. They operated the controls and there were laws that ordered people not to disturb them. "I think we better find out" she stated and she walked over to the Salarian.

When she got close, the Salarian jumped in shock "What!" and then he gasped in fear "Oh no. I wasn't..." he then sighed "Never mind. Is there something you want?"

Garrus looked at the Salarian "Who are you and what were you doing with the Keeper?"

The Salarian sighed "My name is Chorban but I'm not sure I should be talking about this."

"Just tell me what you are doing and you won't get in trouble" Shepard stated

Chorban sighed "Alright, I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you." He stated "I'm using a small scanner to try and gather readings on the Keepers. So far I've had mixed results, it's hard to get close to them."

"If you were just collecting data then why were you being so secretive about it?" Shepard asked

Chorban looked at him "Well technically, we're not supposed to disturb the Keepers. I don't really think my scanner disturbs then as they don't respond to my scanner but I fear the authorities would disagree. I would like to do it more openly but it's not worth getting arrested over. I'm just curious about these Keepers, they've been here longer than any of us but we know almost nothing about them."

"We could help you out" Wrex suggested "We're not afraid of the authorities."

"I'm a C-Sec officer here so I can help you get out of trouble if you get caught" Garrus added

"I appreciate the offer but I don't know who you are?" Chorban stated

"I'm Commander Shepard of the Republic" Shepard introduced herself

"Well I suppose I could use the help" Chorban stated and then he handed his Scanner over "Here, you'll need this; it's the scanner I developed. Activate it each time you find a Keeper, the data will automatically be sent to me. There are twenty-one Keepers around the Presidium and Wards. If you get all of them then I can send you extra credits and I'll also inform you of anything I find."

"I should go" Shepard stated

"Good luck Commander" Chorban stated and then Shepard and her group left. Before they left the Citadel Tower, Shepard used the scanner and managed to scan four Keepers that were in the Citadel Tower.

...

After leaving the Tower, Shepard decided to head over to the Consort's chambers and see if she could get any advice. On the way, she scanned several more Keepers; she scanned one just outside the Citadel Tower, then another near the Ward's elevator, another near the large Krogan Monument Statue and finally one outside the Consort's chambers.

The Krogan Monument was a massive statue of a Krogan which had been placed to honour the Krogan who fought during the Rachni Wars. The Rachni were an insect species that had been discovered after a team of Salarian researchers opened a Relay to an unknown system. The team was captured and the Rachni built their own ships and soon started a war of conquest. Negotiations between the Citadel and Rachni were impossible because the Rachni were a hive like species and their queens remained underground and they could reproduce fast so they had huge numbers. It was also hard since the Rachni worlds had toxic atmospheres. Eventually, the Krogan were discovered and the Salarians uplifted them to help fight the Rachni. The Turians had not been contacted at this time. After several hundred years, the Rachni were hunted into extinction and the galaxy celebrated the end of the long war. However tensions soon rose again due to the Krogan's warlike nature which would result in the start of the Krogan Rebellions. Despite the war, the Krogan monument was never removed even though some people believed that it should. The Council kept the monument saying that what the Krogan did in the Rachni wars should never be forgotten since it was an important Historical fact.

As Shepard entered the Consort's chambers, she saw an Asari assistance waiting "Hello, my name is Nelyna, the personal assistance to the Consort Sha'ira. I suppose that you're here to ask for a meeting with the Consort. You should know that the Consort has many clients but if you leave your name, she should hopefully be able to arrange a meeting with you."

"My name is Commander Jane Alice Shepard of the Republic Military" Shepard introduced herself.

Nelyna checked her computer and gasped "Well it seems that you are in luck." She stated "Normally it could take years to have a meeting but it seems that the consort wants to meet with you right now. If you just follow the corridor, you'll find her chambers and she'll want to talk."

"Well if the Consort wants to meet with you now then that means that she has something for you" Wrex stated "Like she wants you to do something."

"Well we better go see what she wants" Kaidan stated

Shepard and her team walked past some other attendants and made their way to the Consort's chambers where the Consort stood waiting "That is close enough Commander" she stated and she turned around "I have heard a great many things about you since your arrival on the Citadel."

"Wait, you know about me?" Shepard questioned

"Even here in the Citadel we've heard about the Hero of Elysium who defeated many Batarians on her own and saved an entire colony. As a war hero, I was hoping you could help me with something."

"And what is it you want my help with?" Shepard asked

"I have a friend called Septimus" Sha'ira replied "He's a retired Turian General but we've had a bit of a falling out and now he spends his days drinking in Chora's den and spreading lies about me. I was hoping you could speak to him soldier to soldier and he might listen to you and understand."

"Alright, I'll do it" Shepard stated, she didn't mind talking to another soldier as they might have stories to share. Shepard did always like hearing stories from other soldiers.

"Thank you Commander" Sha'ira replied "If you succeed, I might have something to offer you."

Shepard nodded and then left with her team.

...

To get back to Chora's Den, Shepard had to go back to the Wards and along the way, she scanned more Keepers. There was one not far from the markets and to get to the Wards, she had to take two elevators and there was a corridor in between them, she found one of the Keepers there. Soon after arriving at the Wards, there was one next to Dr Michel's office and two more in the Wards Markets.

Just as Shepard was moving back towards the Markets, she heard someone call her and she turned to see a young human female wearing a dress "Hello" the woman greeted "I'm Emily Wong. I'm an investigative journalist working here on the Citadel. Could I have a moment of your time?"

"Of course" Shepard stated "What do you need?"

"Because I'm a journalist, I try to uncover the truths of what goes on here" Wong stated "I've been hunting for evidence of corruption and organised crime here on the Citadel but there are places that I'm not allowed to go. I was hoping if you find any evidence of crime that you could bring it to me. And there has also been word on the street that you've taken down Fist. I was sure that he was a big player in anything that goes on here and I was hoping that you found something in his office."

Shepard remembered that she found the data file on Fist's body after Wrex had killed him. That must be what Emily was looking for "As a matter of fact, I did find something" Shepard stated "I found these OSDs in Fist's office. They might have the information that you're looking for."

Shepard handed over the data and Emily smiled in excitement "You got Fist's files!" she gasped "This is bigger than what I hoped. I must start looking through these files as soon as possible. Here you go Commander, you deserve this." Emily handed Shepard some credits and then she walked away.

After talking with Emily, they carried on to the Markets but just before they went down stairs, Shepard heard someone call her again and she saw a young man with blond hair "Hey, you're Commander Shepard right?" the man stated "I'm Conrad Verner, I'm a big fan of what you've done. I was hoping that I could get your autograph."

"I've never signed an autograph before but alright" Shepard stated and he signed a shirt that Conrad gave her.

"Thanks Commander" Conrad stated "And it's an honour to meet you."

After that, Shepard then walked down towards Chora's den.

...

Despite Shepard's recent assault on Chora's Den, life had returned to normal at the tavern with the staff and drinkers returning after Shepard had dealt with Fist. Many of the workers didn't seem to care about Fist being gone but now they could get on without Fist bothering them.

Shepard found the Turian she was looking for sitting and having a drink near one of the dancers. As Shepard approached him, Septimus looked at him "Commander?" he questioned "What do you want?"

"I'm here on Sha'ira's behalf" Shepard replied "Your lies are hurting her."

"Good!" Septimus growled "The lies have been killing me for days. I've seen a lot of horrible things in my time at the military. I'm not sure I should really say it, but I fought on Shanxi and I saw many of my squad killed by those Walkers that you humans have. But there is only one woman in this damn galaxy that helps me forget it."

Ashley knew what the problem was, Septimus had feelings for Sha'ira and she had rejected him "But if you feel this why about her, then why do you spread lies about her?"

"Because she rejected me!" Septimus growled "Me, Septimus Oraka, General of a Turian Fleet."

"I can see why you're upset but spreading these lies won't make it better" Shepard stated

"Look I appreciate what you're trying to do" Septimus sighed "But don't waste your time."

Shepard knew what she should do it order to make the General feel better, questions "General have you ever won a batter by moping in a bar?"

Septimus laughed "War, that's what this feels like. How did I come to this? So you think it's that easy?" he leaned back in his chair "Just straighten up an act like a general?"

"It would be more productive than sitting here" Tali stated

"Maybe you're right Commander" Septimus stated "Sha'ira's worth the effort even if she won't have me back."

Shepard smiled "This bar is no place for someone like you General" she stated

"Alright, I'll go and say sorry to her" Septimus stated "After I've had a cold shower or two. But there is one thing I must ask of you, there's an Elcor Diplomat who believes Sha'ira gave up his secrets."

"Why would he think such a thing?" Tali asked

"Because I told him" Septimus admitted "Look I just need you to convince him of the truth."

"Why would he believe me though?" Shepard asked

"Because you'll bring him proof" Septimus stated as he handed her a data pad "This data pad shows where I got the info from. Just take it to him."

"Well who am I taking this file to?" Shepard asked

"His name is Xeltan" Septimus stated "You'll find him in the Elcor embassy complaining about Sha'ira." He then picked up his drink "Well here's to soldiers acting like soldiers" he then drank his drink and stood up "Thank you Commander for talking some sense into me." He then walked away leaving Shepard and her team.

With their mission done, Shepard and her team left to go to the Embassies to speak with the Elcor before they would head back to Sha'ira.

...

Shepard and her team made their way over to the Embassies and along the way; Shepard scanned another Keeper inside the Elcor and Volus Embassy. The Volus and the Elcor shared the same Embassy on the Citadel. The Volus Ambassador was known as Din Korlack and like many Volus, he felt bitter towards the council since they had been on the Citadel the longest but had never been offered a council seat despite all the banking and finance work they did. Korlack was also known to be quite rule to many people which the Elcor Ambassador Calyn got annoyed about.

There was a second Elcor in the Embassy which Shepard assumed was the one that Septimus was talking about and so she approached him "Hello there human" Xeltan greeted "I apologize but I'm here on business and I cannot be disturbed."

"Actually your business is why I am here" Shepard stated "I'm here to talk to you about your little problem."

"Curious" Xeltan said "What do you know about the consort and her relationship to me?"

"The consort Sha'ira wasn't the one who leaked your secrets" Shepard stated "It was a Turian General called Septimus. He gave us evidence to prove it." She gave Xeltan the data pad that Septimus had given her.

"Confused." Xeltan claimed "This is difficult to understand. If the Turian could find out on his own, dismay, anyone could find out."

"Septimus is a powerful man in the Turian military" Garrus claimed "This wasn't easy for him to find."

"Relieved" Xeltan said "I suppose you are correct human. Thank you for this information. Startled realisation, I must speak with the Consort, she will be most displeased with my actions. I must go now."

"I'm sure Sha'ira will forgive you" Shepard stated "It was an honest mistake."

"Doubtful" Xeltan said as he turned around "But perhaps you are right. I can only hope so" Xeltan then left leaving Shepard alone.

"Well that went well." Kaidan stated

"So what do we do now?" Ashley requested

"We'll go back and speak with the Consort" Shepard stated "And then I think we'll come back and speak with Ambassador Udina, he should be ready by then."

...

Shepard and her team arrived back at the Consort's chambers and Sha'ira stood waiting for her and she seemed happy "Commander, I recently received a lovely note from Septimus" she stated "Thank you for speaking with him and even the Elcor has withdrawn his campaign against me."

"I'm glad to have helped you" Shepard replied

Sha'ira smiled "You're too kind Commander" she said "But I would not expect you to help me out of the kindness of your heart. I also have one more thing to give you. I offer you a gift of words which tell you who you are and who you will become. I see you; I see your uniform fits as though you were born wearing it. You are a soldier through and through. Proud, solitary, alone, but it gives you strength. It is that strength that people are drawn to. It is why you lead and why others follow without question. You will need that leadership in the battles to come."

"You have quite a gift of words Sha'ira" Shepard responded

"Thank you Commander" Sha'ira stated "Not everyone appreciates my words as much as you do. For your efforts with the Elcor Diplomat, I'm also giving you this trinket. I've had it for years but I've never been able to find out its purpose. Maybe someday in your travels you will."

"Thank you Sha'ira" Shepard replied

"And thank you for what you have done for me" Sha'ira responded "And now I must ask you to leave, I have other customers to deal with."

Kaidan looked at Shepard "We should head back to the Embassies" he stated "Udina should be ready for us now."

...

Shepard and her team soon made it back to the Embassy and saw Ambassador Udina waiting for them alongside Colonel Yularen and Captain Anderson. But there was also someone else in the room. It was a Salarian who was wearing expensive armour so he was important.

Udina turned around when he saw his door open "Commander Shepard" he greeted "I've seen that you've returned. We've just received word from Arcturus. The Senate have agreed to give you this mission and allow a new council Spectre to go with you." He then introduced the Salarian "This is Jondum Bau, he's the new Spectre assigned to serve with you."

"I've read reports about your accomplishments Commander Shepard." Bau greeted "I look forward to our missions together."

"Well he'll be a valuable member of our team" Shepard stated "So what are my new orders?"

Anderson spoke up "The Senate have decided to give command of the Normandy over to you Commander" he stated "You'll still be working for the Republic but your reports will go straight to Colonel Yularen. Spectre Bau will write the reports to the Citadel."

Yularen then spoke up "And before you start your mission to hunt down Saren, you have to head back to Arcturus. The Normandy is still running on a skeleton crew so you'll need to pick up new crew members who have been assigned to the Normandy. We still have to go through our reports on places where Saren might be heading but we'll have that information waiting for you back at Arcturus."

Udina then added something else "There is one more thing" he stated "Chancellor Mothma has given Spectre Bau access to the Senate Meeting hall, he'll be the first Council Representative allowed in that room. The situation in the Senate is tense and Chancellor Mothma believes that the Council needs to be aware of this so she wants Spectre Bau to observe a meeting which will be going through when you get back."

"Well we have our orders" Shepard stated "It's time we head back to the Normandy."

"Commander" Anderson spoke up as they began to leave alongside Bau "Good luck, I have a feeling that there will be more to this mission than we believe."

"I'll make sure that whatever Saren is planning will fail" Shepard smiled as she left.

...

Now that they had their orders, Shepard and her team went back to the Normandy with a data file that she would give to Joker to inform him of the change of Command. To get to the Landing Dock, they had to take an elevator back down to C-Sec Academy and then another one up to the Landing Dock where they boarded the Normandy. But just before Shepard boarded, she scanned another Keeper just on the Landing Dock outside the Normandy.

When they boarded the Normandy, Shepard went to the Bridge and saw Luke and Joker waiting for them. Joker looked at her "I've heard about what happened to Captain Anderson" he stated, he must have already been informed by Anderson "He survives one hundred battles and then gets taken down by backroom politics."

"This is why I followed the path of my father and became a pilot" Luke stated "My sister followed my mother's footsteps so she might become a Senator one day."

"Just watch your back Commander" Joker added "We have a new Spectre on board and if things go bad on this mission, it's your head on the chopping block."

"Saren's out there somewhere" Shepard stated "And we're going to find him and make sure he pays for what he did on Eden Prime."

"Everyone on this ship is with you Commander" Luke stated "The intercom's open, if you want to say something to the crew, now is the time."

Shepard leaned forward into the microphone and began speaking "This is Commander Shepard speaking." She said as her voice sounded all over the ship and everyone stopped working to hear what she was saying "We have our orders but first we must head back to Arcturus to pick up the rest of the crew since we're just running on a skeleton crew. But we know that Saren is after the conduit and we have to find him before he finds it. I won't lie to you but this mission isn't going to be easy. What happened on Eden Prime is just the start, Saren has an army of Geth behind him and he might attack more Republic Worlds. Saren knows that we're coming for him, when we go into the Traverse, his followers will be looking for us. But we'll be ready for them to. The Republic must stand united, not just for our own sakes for but show the rest of the galaxy that we are a proper power and not just a bunch of people who are trying to remove the Citadel Council. Saren is a threat to everyone and he must be stopped. And I promise you, we will stop him."

Joker smiled when Shepard finished her speech "Well said Commander. Captain Anderson would be proud."

Shepard sighed "I hate giving speeches" she muttered "But these speeches won't matter if we don't stop Saren so we all need to do our jobs. Get this bird into the air and set a course for Arcturus."

"Aye Aye Commander" Joker smiled as Shepard left. Joker quickly left a request to the Citadel Control who unlocked the magnetic clamps and then Joker and Luke piloted the ship away from the Normandy.

"Setting coordinates to Arcturus" Luke stated as he and Joker began placing the coordinates to Arcturus Station into the Navigator Computer after they radioed Pressly.

"Coordinates set" Joker stated "Jumping in three, two, one" then he and Luke pushed the lever and the Normandy jumped into lightspeed and vanished from sight from the Citadel.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: This is part 2 of the Citadel Arc, I brought in a few of the Side Quests but some more of them will be done when we return to the Citadel later. The next chapter will be set at Arcturus Station and since the station never appeared in the game except for the destroyed ruins in Mass Effect 3, the station will be my own design. I brought Spectre Bau from Mass effect 3 into this story as a Salarian follower for Shepard's team as the Salarians hardly had any use in the Mass Effect 1 storyline. I also made Shepard more doubtful of the Reapers existence at the moment as she's not fully certain if they are real or not yet. Also I need suggestions for new members of the Normandy's crew and if you have any ideas let me know but I would like non-human members so that the Normandy is more like a Republic Ship than a human ship. But I have Exams starting next week so the next chapter will be a while.**


	7. Arcturus Station:

**Arcturus Station:**

Shepard walked through the second deck of the Normandy until she reached one of the rooms. She knocked on the door and waited for a response.

"Enter" came the voice and the new Spectre assigned to the Normandy, Jondum Bau. Shepard entered and saw the Salarian sitting in the room which he had made for himself. Since he was a Spectre, he had been given his own room and he seemed to have set the room up so he could prepare for anything. It reminded Shepard of her original room before she had been made the commander of the Normandy and now she had the larger captain's quarters which had belonged to Anderson before. Bau was the only new person who had come onto the Normandy who had his own room. Tali, Garrus and Wrex had to make space in the ship's barracks and some of the crew were a bit uncomfortable with these Citadel Crew but found them fun to chat with. Tali had left the barracks and made a space for herself down on the Engineering deck. She said that she had slept rough on ships and didn't mind sleeping on the cold deck. Wrex and Garrus enjoyed sharing stories of battles with the Normandy's crew.

Bau turned around and looked at Shepard "Commander Shepard" he greeted "Is there anything I can help with?"

"I thought I should get to know you better since we'll be working together." Shepard responded

Bau smiled "I don't mind talking about myself" he stated "It's nice to be able to speak my mind."

"Well what do you think of this mission?" Shepard asked "You've known Saren longer than me, how do you feel about having to take down someone who you've fought alongside before."

Bau sighed "Actually, Saren and I have never fought alongside each other" he stated "Most Spectres tend to work alone. As for taken down Saren, I say it's about time."

That caught Shepard by surprise "You don't think much of Saren?" she questioned

Bau snorted "Saren is a disgrace to the Turians and to the Spectres. The council only protected him because he always got results even if his methods were unnecessary. He causes Civilian deaths when they can be avoided and doesn't care about them afterwards. Spectres sometimes have to do things dirty but Saren goes too far sometimes. I remember one mission where a group of Citadel separatists on the planet Batonn took over a place known as Scrim Island. They were led by extremist Batarians who wanted to force the council start forcing to give them more say and stop Republic expansion. Saren was sent it with a council fleet to put pressure on the Batarians. But the Batarians had recently stolen one of the Republic's shield generators that prevented us from sending in the troops to retake the island. Saren was sent in to bring down the shield generator but there was a massive explosion that destroyed the main part of the island, killing the Batarian leadership and most of their forces but also killing many civilians."

"How many civilians were killed?" Sheppard asked

"The numbers were unknown" Bau replied "But they outnumbered the enemy by far. Saren claimed that one of the Batarian leaders decided to destroy the base as a message but we don't know the truth. The council had an inquiry into what happened but nothing was found although they did suspect Saren was involved with this but they had no proof and he had done his mission. But many Spectres didn't trust Saren after that, incidents like that only make the Spectres look bad."

"That's some story" Shepard stated

"And that's just one story about Saren" Bau admitted "I've also heard stories of how he destroyed whole buildings full of civilians just to take out one target. This attack on Eden Prime was the excuse that the Council needed to strip Saren of his Spectre status."

"Unfortunately, many of the Senators don't see it like that." Shepard admitted "Many of the Senators don't like the Citadel Council so it's best that you stay with me when we arrive on Arcturus Station."

Bau looked at Shepard "I'm curious about this Senate that the Republic has?" he stated "How does it work?"

"Well, every major colony elects a representative from their planet and that gives the planet a voice in law making in the government." Shepard replied "Since many colonies have mixed races, we have a mix of different races in the Senate."

"And how does a colony get the right to have a seat on the Senate?" Bau asked

Shepard sighed "I can't really give the best answer for that because I'm not a politician" she replied "But the colony has to be able to sustain itself, have a large population and also be able to build a small fleet that can defend itself until a Republic fleet can arrive. With the massive populations that the Republic species has, it allowed many colonies to grow fast."

"Just out of curiosity, what about species that are not part of the Republic" Bau asked

"Actually, there are quite a large number of people from races outside the Republic which settle on our colonies and it is allowed although they are not granted Republic Citizenship until they've lived and worked with the Republic for five years." Shepard responded "And I'm not just talking about Citadel Races, there are a number of species from the Terminus systems that have settled in the Republic. These species are not classed as Republic species because their home planets are not in Republic space that tends to be how a species becomes an official Republic species. I'll show you some of these races when we get to Arcturus."

"So what will happen when we get to Arcturus Station?" Bau requested

"Well most of the Crew will be allowed to do what they want for a while until we get our orders." Shepard replied "But some of our crew such as Garrus, Wrex and Tali will not be allowed in parts of the station since they're guests on this ship, not Republic soldiers. In fact, I have to get you a special code cylinder that we'll get when we land that will allow you into the central dome where the Republic HQ is as well as the Senate. Only me, you and Kaidan will be allowed into the Senate, Ashley will be allowed into the Republic military area but she isn't a high enough rank to go into the Senate. There you will see why Chancellor Mothma is concerned about what happened at Eden Prime."

"Well, I'm looking forward to see how the Republic rules" Bau stated

It was then that Joker was heard over the radio "Commander, we're approaching Arcturus Station, you better come up to the Bridge."

"Alright Joker, I'm on my way" Shepard said through her radio

"I'll join you" Bau stated "I'll like to see what the Station looks like" and then the two of them left the room.

…

Bau and Shepard made it to the bridge where the blue vortex of Lightspeed went around them. "We're approaching Arcturus Station Commander" Luke stated

"Exiting Lightspeed in three, two, one…" Joker stated and then he pulled the lever and the Normandy came out of lightspeed and back to normal space travelling speed.

Arcturus Station was in front of them. The massive station, which was the headquarters of the Republic, was not as big as the Citadel but it was still impressive. There was a large sphere that was surrounded by a large ring and it looked almost like a planet. Bau could see several hangers which were used by the Republic military and defence towers surrounding the station.

"I see that Arcturus Station looks like a battle station" Bau claimed

"We always have a few Republic Fleets here" Shepard claimed "But the Station has to have a means of righting against incoming fighters."

"That is something that the Citadel doesn't have" Bau stated "There's no defence towers on the Citadel, just the defensive fleet."

"And we always have two fleets stationed here" Luke added and he pointed out of the window where several ships were moving around. One was a large Resurgence Class Star Destroyer which was a Dreadnought "That's the RSV Kilimanjaro, flagship of the Fifth Fleet commanded by Admiral Hackett."

"My mother is the EO on that ship" Shepard claimed

Bau then saw a large ship that was not a Star Destroyer. It was 1200 meters long and looked like it had thick armour so it was a Dreadnought as it also had large cannons on the side. But it had a long stick coming out from the bottom and unlike Star Destroyers, it was a round shape instead of the dagger shape "What ship is that?" he asked

Joker looked at the ship in question "That's the RSV Profundity, the flagship of the Third Fleet. That's a Mon Calamari ship build from the ruins of an abandoned city on Mon Cala. The ship is commander by a Mon Calamari Admiral known as Raddus, one of the best Mon Calamari in service."

Bau had a questioned "Does the Republic Navy had a fleet admiral to oversee all the navies?" he asked

"We normally do" Shepard replied "Fleet Admiral Jon Grissom was the Fleet Admiral for many years but he retired a few years ago to settle on Elysium. Now the Republic is having problems choosing a new Fleet Admiral. There are worries that the Republic is too human, many of our senior Officers are human and that has raised worry in the Senate that the navy is too human."

"Not all the Admirals are human" Luke stated "Raddus is a Mon Calamari and Admiral Thrawn of the Seventh Fleet is a Chiss and one of the best Admirals in the navy."

Joker chucked "Thrawn would have become Fleet Admiral but he doesn't like politics and the politicians aren't too fond of him. His tactics are risky and anything could go wrong but he's proven them wrong many times and the politicians have been humiliated."

"I'll see people like him" Bau stated "Some leaders like getting results instead of glory. That's what makes good leaders."

Joker smiled "Well we're preparing to dock." He activated the com. "This is RSV Normandy to Arcturus Control, we're requesting a landing dock."

After a few moments, the reply came "Copy Normandy" a voice came "Report to Dock 25, we're received information about your arrival and a team will meet your captain when you land."

"Understood control" Joker stated

Shepard looked at Bau "Well we better get ready for docking." She stated and then she left and Bau followed her.

...

Later the Normandy was attached to Arcturus Station and a bridge connected the Station to the Air lock. Shepard dressed into her Commander Armour and she gathered the rest of her team which included Ashley, Kaidan, Garrus, Wrex and Tali. They soon left the Normandy and they were greeted by a group of soldiers in blue armour. These were the Senate Guards, the soldiers who guarded Arcturus Station and the Republic's version of C-Sec. The leader of them removed his blue helmet to reveal a head with thick blond hair.

"Welcome to Arcturus Station" he greeted "I'm Captain Argyus and I've been sent to escort you to the Senate Chambers." He looked at Tali, Wrex and Garrus "Although I regret to inform you that some of your team members will not be allowed inside because they're not Republic military or politicians."

Shepard looked at Tali, Wrex and Garrus "I'm sorry you three" she said "But that's the law here. But there's plenty of stuff to do around here while you wait. I've given you all Republic communicators which will let you know that I need to meet you again. If it beeps then meet us at the SDF War Memorial, you'll find its location on any map here of the station. Enjoy yourselves while you're here." She then looked at Wrex "And Wrex, try not to cause trouble here, don't get angry because people stare at you, most people on this station have never seen a Krogan before and when they have, it's often been bad." She then looked at Tali "Most people have never seen a Quarian before either so don't hold it against you."

"I won't" Tali stated "I think I'll have a bit of fun while I'm here, we Quarians never get the chance to do that."

"Well I like to hear a good war story" Wrex stated "I'll go see if I can find anyone who can tell me those."

"I'll go with you" Garrus added "I like war stories as well."

The three of them then left to do their own thing leaving Shepard along with Ashley, Kaidan and Bau. Captain Argyus looked at Bau "Well now that you're here, I was ordered to deliver this to our Spectre Guest" he handed Bau a code cylinder "This code cylinder will allow you to get into the Senate's chambers but you must all hand over your weapons before you enter. Weapons are forbidden in the Senate no matter who they are."

"Understood" Bau stated "This is your place so it's your rules. It's a good job that I'm not one of those Spectres who believes I have absolute authority."

"Well that's good to hear" Argyus claimed "Now we must get going, the Senate is starting to gather for their meeting."

…

Captain Argyus led Shepard and her group through into one of the monorails that took them from the Outer Ring of the Station towards the Centre Sphere where the Senate was held. Ashley had left them when they entered the Sphere since she was not high enough of a rank to enter the Senate. Captain Argyus led the remaining three to the Senate Chambers where they handed their code Cylinders to the guard standing watch and they handed their weapons to the guards. The guard eyed Bau with suspicious but they let him into the Senate Chambers where the Senators of the Republic had gathered.

The Senate Chambers was a large open area that served as the meeting point for the Senators. All around the room were small repulsorpods where the Senators along with representatives would sit. This pods were designed to move around so that their voice could be heard across the room and get closer to the Chancellor. Each pod also had microphones and translators so that when someone who spoke a different language spoke up, what they said could be understood. In the Centre of the room was a large Podium where the Chancellor of the Republic would sit during the meetings.

Shepard and her team were sat high in the chamber and watched as the other senators took their seas. Some seats were empty since they would be used for future colonies. Bau was amazed at how many people represented the Senate and saw many species that did not live in Citadel Space. When all the Senators had gathered, a woman stood on the centre podium and stood up. This woman had short blond hair and wore a white robe. This was Chancellor Mon Mothma, the elected Chancellor of the Republic. She was a strong supporter of good relationships with the Citadel and opposed military build-up and had once tried to pass a military restriction act but it had been rejected by the Senate due to the ongoing problems with the Batarians and the fear of security. This failed act had made enemies for Chancellor Mon Mothma as some felt like she was too pro Citadel and there were many Senators who were very opposed to the Citadel.

"I now call for this meeting of the Senate to begin" Mothma called and thanks to the microphones, Shepard's group could hear it even though they were very far away. "We are here to discuss the recent attack on Eden Prime and how we should respond."

"Well we already know several things!" one senator snapped "This attack was led by one of those Citadel Spectres which shows that they were involved in this attack."

"We have information that this Spectre has gone rogue and was not acting on the Citadel's orders." A female Senator spoke up; this one had long black hair and wore fancy robes which showed how important she was "We mustn't rush to conclusions unless we'll enter an endless war."

"Our military is strong" another Senator spoke up "We don't have to overthrow the Citadel, just send a message that we are not to be pushed around."

"And how would that look to our colonies" a male senator with black hair spoke up "Many people settle on new planets to start a new life, they don't want war."

Then a pod with an older man started to move around. The man had greying hair with a bald forehead and he wore a dark grey military uniform "I've seen what life is like on the Outer colonies" the man stated "I personally don't want to start a great war but I value security in the Republic and we cannot do that if the Citadel keep trying to make us accept our laws. They have to understand that the Republic is not part of the Citadel and we have different laws. And besides, we seem to be the ones who keep a strong grip on our laws when the Citadel allowed the Batarians to keep enslaving people despite it being against the Citadel Law." The people of the Senate clamped for this man which showed that he was very popular among the Senators.

Mon Mothma spoke up "The attack on Eden Prime is not the only think we have to discuss in this meeting." She stated "Our allies in the Terminus systems have reported strange sightings of insect Aliens that no one has ever seen. The Bothan Spies are trying to gather more information to see if these Aliens are a threat since they seem to be interested in our Colonies."

The same older man from before spoke up "I can start by increasing the military in our outer colonies in case these Aliens get any ideas but we may need to have a full fleet ready for deployment if it is needed."

Mothma looked at the man "If we mobilize our full force it would look like we are preparing for war and increase tensions even more" she claimed "Admiral Thrawn and the Seventh Fleet are already investigating the Geth activity but we can't have more military ships closer to the border with the Citadel in case we provoke them into attacking us."

As the meeting went on, Shepard, Kaidan and Bau watched from their pod and Bau could see why Chancellor Mon Mothma was worried, she seemed to have many Senators who disagreed with her peaceful ideas with the Citadel and she could see many of the Senators here were anti-Citadel.

...

Meanwhile back in the Civilian area, Tali had made her way into a large Arcade. Tali could see many people, mainly children, were playing different games, some involved shooting while others were some kind of slot machine. Tali had heard of these games on the Citadel but many of these she had never seen before. There also was a range of different games; some of these were originally created over 200 years ago. Tali didn't have any money herself to use but she had fun watching the other children play.

One child suddenly came up to her "Why do you wear that helmet?" the boy asked "I don't want to be rude but I've never seen an Alien wear a helmet all the time, most take them off."

Tali was unable to resist a chuckle, Shepard had told her that many people had never met a Quarian before "I am a Quarian" she told the child "My immune system is very weak compared to yours, what you would call a simple cold would be fatal to me so these special suits protect us."

"At school we are taught about the different races of the Republic and a bit about the Citadel" the child added "But we're never been taught anything about the Quarians."

Tali sighed "I'm not really that surprised" she stated "Many people view the Quarians as vermin since we don't have a home planet after we lost ours to a race of robots known as the Geth. We have travelled the galaxy in our fleet trying to survive."

"That must be an adventure" the child stated

Tali sighed "You may think it's fun but believe me, it is not. Every day I have to live with the thought that any day there could be an outbreak of illness that could destroy most of our population or we may have unfriendly contact with someone. There may be millions of Quarians on the migrate Fleet but we are unable to live a normal life or have fun like you do. Every day we have to work to keep our ships together and find the resources to survive."

Then Tali heard the boy's parents call him and the boy left her after saying goodbye leaving Tali alone, it felt good to share the life of the Quarians with someone and maybe this would get the plight of the Quarians to be questioned in the Senate and maybe they could get Republic support.

...

In another part of Arcturus Station, Garrus and Wrex had travelled together into a large museum known as the Republic War museum. This museum showed the history of the Republic military in the short period of history they had existed. The museum was on three floors with the ground floor showing the ground vehicles and soldiers, the first floor showed the fighters while the top floor was about the warships.

On the ground floor, Wrex and Garrus looked at the weapons of the Republic which were held behind glass cases and even had old weapons from Earth before space travel. But it was the large military vehicles which caught their eye. Garrus stared at an old All Terrain Assault Vehicle or ATAT. Garrus had heard stories from Turian soldiers about 4 legged walking tanks which were very difficult to take out due to their thick armour. There was also a smaller All Terrain Scout Vehicle or ATST which was smaller, faster and just as well armoured as well as an All Terrain Attack Pods or ATAP which was a 3 legged pod walker used for long range artillery strikes, an All Terrain Recon Transport or ATRT which was a small 2 legged walker used for scouts and were very fast, a 74-Z speeder bike, an All Terrain Open Transport or ATOT which was an eight legged troop transport and finally, a HAVw A6 Juggernaut or better known as a turbo tank which was a very heavily armoured 6 wheeled tank. There was also a Mako tank which Garrus had seen in the Normandy's hanger. Both Garrus and Wrex were amazed at these military vehicles and Garrus could see why they terrified the Turian soldiers in the Shanxi War since some of them got decimated as they had no air support.

The second floor was just as interesting. Both Wrex and Garrus had never really since fighters be used in battles, only for air cover but the Republic made use of fighters as there were many different types such as Fighters or Bombers. The museum had many different starfighters A Wing which was a fast interceptor fighter used for dogfights, the popular X-Wing which had wings in the shape of an X, these were the most common starfighter and were used mainly as escorts for bombers as they weren't as fast as A-Wings. The ARC 170 was an older fighter that was used as a fighter in the older days when the Republic was new but they had been replaced by the X-Wings. There was also a U-Wing which was a small troop transport to transport small crews from larger ships onto planets. For bombers, there was an old V-Wing which like the ARC 170, this was no longer used and had been replaced by the Y-Wing bomber which was shaped like a Y. There was even a very old Jackal fighter which was from Earth before the Republic had been created.

While looking at the fighters, Wrex looked very interested "These Starfighters could do some serious damage in battles" he stated "The Republic sure knows how to build military machines. After the Krogan Rebellions, we weren't allowed a fleet."

Garru looked at the fighters as well "Some Turians I've talked to underestimated the power of these fighters." He stated "During the Shanxi War, the Turian fleet was attacked by these fighters and the Turians didn't believe they were a threat. They were wrong, one Dreadnought got disabled by the fighters and was then crippled by fire from a cruiser. It had to retreat from the battle. The walkers we saw before also put fear due to their size and their armour. With no air cover, the soldiers were unable to fight back against these walkers."

"There is still more on the next floor" Wrex stated "Now this might have some good things about space battles since they're about the Republic's navy. I would like to see how the Republic did in space battles."

The two of them then headed up to the next floor.

…

Back in the centre Sphere, the Senate meeting had ended and Shepard, Bau and Kaidan were leaving the Senate building.

"I can see why your Chancellor is worried" Bau stated "She seems to have a lot of opposition."

Kaidan looked at him "Many Senators don't trust the Citadel and that's due to what they've head. They see the Council as only support themselves and not serving the needs of the minor species such as the Volus, that's why the Volus and Elcor have starting forming stronger relations with the council. They believe that we're a better option."

"They believe that because the Republic is known to aid the species they discover" Shepard stated "To become a Republic Species, your home planet must be able to defend itself and be in Republic territory. The Bothans you heard about earlier are non-classed as a Republic species because their home planet of Bothawui is located in the Terminus systems but they help the Republic and are our spies in those areas. They give us warnings about incoming Slaver attacks and have been very useful to us."

Bau looked at Shepard "So there are many species in the Republic which are not represented?" he questioned "The Citadel has hardly ever made contact with other species."

"Because your relay laws forbid the activation of Mass Relays, it's left large parts of the galaxy unexplored" Shepard stated "In the Republic, many wealthy people like to have their names in the history books so they fund mapping missions to discover new species. That older man you saw in the Senate is Governor Wilhuff Tarkin. He's the most powerful man in the Senate, he controls a large amount of territory from his home planet of Eriadu and he owns the largest private military in the Republic. His family is very rich due to the number of mining industries they control and Tarkin funds many mapping missions in the outer areas of the Republic. Because of his power, the Chancellor has to keep him loyal."

"Is he a danger to the Senate?" Bau asked

Shepard sighed "Not quite" she stated "He believes that humans are superior but respects other species if they remain loyal to the Republic and work together. He will strike down hard at rebellion but will reward loyalty. He is also very against the Citadel and hates Slavers. The territory he controls is at the outer parts of the Republic which is why he's a governor and not a Senator. The Republic doesn't have much central control over those territories which is why people like Tarkin work hard in those areas to keep Slavers out as well as pirates. There are quite a number of species that are in Tarkin's area and he helps fund them to build up their military to become Republic Species, he believes that it will help defend the Republic from raiders from the Terminus Systems."

Bau had a thought "He did seem to be very against the Chancellor." He stated

"People like Tarkin don't like the idea of forming better relations with the Citadel" Kaidan stated "They fear that it would result in the Republic being controlled which they don't like. Mothma has some support from Senator Amidala of Naboo and Senator Organa of Alderaan. They're both strong supporters of peace and they control some of the largest colonies in the Republic so they have a lot of respect but it doesn't stop the anti-Citadel feelings."

Shepard sighed "We really should go back to the Alliance so we can get our orders for hunting Saren" She stated

"Agreed" Bau stated and the three of them left towards the Republic Navy headquarters.

...

The team made it to the Republic Military headquarters which was also inside the large sphere. They found Ashley waiting for them in a seating area "Admiral Hackett is going to give us our orders" she stated "But Rear Admiral Kahoku is also with him as he had a mission for us as well."

"Well we better not keep them waiting." Shepard stated and they entered the officer where two human males stood in full military uniform and they had admiral badges showing that they were important military personal. One was older and had wrinkles on his face and a thin grey beard, this was Admiral Steven Hackett, the commanding officer of the Fifth Fleet and a personal friend of Shepard's mother since they both commanded the same ship. The other man was younger but still middle ages and had a shaved face, this was Rear Admiral Kahoku, he had been in command of the Cruiser RSV Tiger which was one of the leading ships during the Skyllian Blitz where he had gained a large amount of respect from his men.

"Commander Shepard" Hackett greeted as he shook Shepard's hand "It's good to see you again, your mother is constantly asking about how you are."

"Well she's acting like all mothers would" Shepard stated "So you have my orders to help hunt down Saren?"

Hackett sighed "We don't know where Saren has gone but we have a few leads." He stated "The Geth are making a move again on Republic Territory and they have established outposts in the Armstrong Nebula. Admiral Thrawn and the Seventh Fleet have been sent to take them out. But that might just be a staging ground."

"Are there any other leads?" Shepard asked

Kohoku spoke up "There is one last lead and it might be the one you have to go to first" he stated "The other woman from that voice recording is Matriarch Benezia, she had a daughter called Liara. She's a Prothean researcher and she might have some idea to what Saren and Benezia are doing. She is also currently in Republic territory studying Prothean ruins on the planet Therum."

"So I guess that's where we'll be going first." Shepard stated

Kohoku had something else to say "There is one favour I must ask of you since you'll be going into the Artemis Tau systems" he stated "A group of scouts I sent to that system have gone missing and I'm hoping if you can find them if you can."

"I can't make any promises but if I do what I can to find them" Shepard stated

"Well you have your mission Shepard" Hackett stated "And we've already assigned your new crew members along with several Officers to the Normandy, they'll be waiting to hear the mission when you get back."

"I'll set off as soon as I can" Shepard stated

"Good luck Shepard" Hackett stated

Shepard along with Bau, Kaidan and Ashley left the room after that "Well we should inform Wrex, Tali and Garrus that we need to be going back to the Normandy now."

"I'm sending them a message now" Shepard stated "They should be at the memorial when we get there when we get back."

"Let's get going them." Kaidan stated and the four of them started their trip to the memorial.

...

The memorial that Shepard was talking about was just outside the Republic War Museum so it didn't take long for Wrex and Garrus to get there since they had been in the museum. Tali had joined them a while afterwards and they waited for Shepard to arrive. Luckily, there was a bar nearby so Wrex was able to grab a few drinks while they waited.

"So what' this memorial about?" Wrex asked the other two.

Garrus looked at the memorial which was a large wall with many named carved in. "This memorial is a list of names so maybe it's a list of people who've died in some kind of major accident."

Tali looked at the wall "There are too many names to be just a small accident." She claimed "It has to have been because of a war."

"It is" came a voice and the three of them turned to see the Normandy's pilot Luke walk up to them "I was allowed off the Normandy so I could see my mother."

"So what is this memorial about?" Wrex asked

"It's dedicated to those who died in one of the human's major wars" Luke stated "About fifty years ago, humanity wasn't that united and two factions emerged, Earth and Mars and a brutal war broke out between them since Mars was a military state. In the end, Earth won and Mars was defeated and was forced to reconnect with Earth. The leaders known as the Settlement Defence Front were all killed though a few managed to escape and are believed to be those who founded the Human separatist group known as Cerberus. All these names are the names of marines who died in the war. This was once at the Humanity's Alliance headquarters on Earth but after the founding of the Republic, it was moved here. Some of these names became famous for what they did" he pointed to one name "Nick Reyes is the Hero of the War; he ended the War at the cost of his life when he destroyed their major shipyard on Mars. That's why there's also a statue of him nearby" he pointed to a statue of a human nearby. Then Luke sighed "My father was a member of the Republic navy and he fought in the Shanxi War where he became a well respected leader. When he was a child, he grew up on Mars and saw firsthand how the Front dealt with people. He lived little better than a slave along with his mother and so he swore that he would never allow things like that to happen. He joined the navy so he could do something to help the galaxy and was one of the most vocal against the Batarians due to their ideas on slavery. During his time in the navy, she met my mother Padme Amidala, she's the senator of Naboo and a well respected politician."

"So your mother is a senator and your father is a soldier" Garrus stated

"That's right" Luke stated "But despite their differences, my parents loved each other. But like my parents, me and my sister follow different paths."

"I didn't know you had a sister" Tali stated

"My sister Leia is following the footsteps of my mother in politics to become a Senator one day." Luke admitted "We still liked to hear stories of my father but it's been hard without him."

Garrus realised that something must have happened to Luke's father "What happened?" he asked

Luke sighed "My father was General Anakin Skywalker, he was one of the best leaders in the army had was one to lead charges with his soldiers, he led the ground reinforcements at Shanxi and would later fight against the Batarians. But about ten years ago during the Verge War, he was sent away by Chancellor Sheev Palpatine on an important mission and never returned. We haven't heard anything from him and Palpatine vanished himself after he finished his term as Chancellor. Mothma hasn't been able to get anything either."

"I'm sorry to hear that" Tali stated "I've lost a parent as well only it was my mother. Quarians have weak immune systems which is why we wear these environmental suits but we're not immune completely. When I was a young child, an outbreak killed everyone on board one of the Quarian ships including my mother. I was raised by my father and an old friend of his."

Luke sighed "I always have hope that maybe my father is still alive somewhere and I might find out just what happened to him." He stated "But anyway, it seems that our commander is here."

Shepard then arrived with Kaidan, Bau and Ashley "Well crew, we have our mission orders. You've had a short relax here but now we need to get serious. Since we're all here, I'm going to tell you our mission so I don't have to call two meetings since I'll also have to do this with my Officers. We have several leads on Saren on several worlds but our first mission will be to located Dr Liara T'soni, she's the daughter of Matriarch Benezia, the other voice in that recording Tali had. She has been located on the Planet Therum so that's where we're heading."

"Well I can't wait for a fight" Wrex stated

"It'll be good to take Saren down after what he did" Garrus stated

Bau looked at Shepard "So we're all going back to the Normandy now?" he questioned

Shepard nodded "We are" she stated and then the whole group headed back to the Normandy to prepare for their mission.

...

Soon they were all back on the Normandy and saw that the rest of the crew were on board. During the mission to Eden Prime and the Citadel, the Normandy had only been running on a skeleton crew of humans, now the crew included Twi'leks, Togrutas, Rodians, Chiss and a few Wookies for heavy lifting in the Cargo hold. Shepard would meet the Officers later but first she had to make sure that all of the crew assigned were on board so she went over to Navigator Pressly.

"Pressly, are all of the crew here now?" she asked

Pressly looked at his data pad "All of our assigned crew are on board Commander" he stated as he looked at Shepard "It will be nice to see this ship running with all her crew."

"I'll tell Joker and Luke to set a course for our first destination" Shepard stated as she left Pressly alone who carried on his duties.

Shepard soon made it back to the bridge where Luke and Joker were waiting "It's time we started our Hunt for Saren." She told them.

"Finally" Joker stated "Now we can see some action again."

"Be careful what you wish for" Luke stated and he activated the radio "Arcturus, RSV Normandy is now leaving the Citadel for mission."

"Copy Normandy" Arcturus docking command stated over the radio "Releasing Normandy now, and good luck on your mission."

"Will do" Joker replied and then the magnetic clamps holding the Normandy released and Joker reversed the Normandy backwards and then the Normandy started moving away from Arcturus Station and Joker looked at Shepard "So where to Commander?" he asked

"Set a course for the planet Therum in the Artemis Tau cluster" Shepard replied "We have to find an Asari Doctor who may have information on Saren."

"Plotting a course now" Luke stated as he began setting the course on the Navi computer "It will take a few jumps to get there but we should be arriving in about 16 hours."

"That will give me time to get to know the new additions to the crew" Shepard responded.

"Coordinates set" Luke stated "Leaving Arcturus in three, two, one" then Normandy blasted into lightspeed and left Arcturus system to start the Hunt for Saren.

**Chapter end:  
Notes: Sorry this chapter took a while but I had my exams to work on but the good news is that my exams are now over so I have all the time I want to write so I will try and get as much done as I can before I start my next year in University. I would also like to thank Stormspartan21 for his idea on the Bothans which I brought into the story. I also plan to bring in the Geonsians and Trandoshans such as Bossk but they won't appear until the Mass Effect 2 storyline. And for SpiderTerran, some of the species he suggested have already been brought in but I can bring some more in after I get some more information on them so I may rewrite the timeline to bring them in. I can't bring every Star Wars species into the story because there will be too many. Also, I need some ideas for new companions from the Star Wars race for Shepard's team. Bau will be a Salarian companion and I plan to bring in a Batarian Companion in a few chapters time. I am working on a chapter of Dragon X and Rise of the Divines so it may be some time before I update again but it will allow some new ideas to be suggested.**


	8. Therum:

**Therum:**

The Normandy was speeding through Hyperspace towards the Artemis Tau Cluster towards the Knossos System where the planet Therum was. The trip would take a long time since the Artemis Tau Cluster was on the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy. To pass the time, Shepard decided to know her crew better since the Normandy now had a full crew that was a mix of different races from the Republic. She had called all of the Officers into the Comm. Room which was just behind the CIC. More chairs had been brought in by the Protocol Droids which had also been brought on board at Arcturus Station. Eventually all of the Officers on board the Normandy were in the Comm. Room sitting on one of the chairs. The only Officers that Shepard knew where Pressly and Adams since they were on board during the mission to Eden Prime. There were now seven new Officers in the room and none of them were human but there were all Republic Species. There was a male Twi'lek who introduced himself as Supply Officer Zeplatuz. He would be in charge of the Cargo supplies that came onto the Normandy. He had a Wookie Assistance called Dikleorr or better known as Dik who was currently down sorting supplies in the Cargo Bay.

Then there was a common sight on Republic Warships which was a Chiss Officer. Some of the best Officers in the Republic were Chiss since out of all the Republic species, the Chiss had been a space faring species the longest and were skilled in combat. This Chiss was a male who introduced himself as Zitt'ozar'sruno or better known as Zitt who would be the Gunnery Officer on the Normandy so he would be in charge of the Normandy's weapons during space combat. Then there was the Normandy's communication Officer who would be needed to keep the Communications Array operational. This would allow the Normandy to communicate with other ships which was important in warfare. The Normandy's communication Officer was a female Togruta called Doka Phasa. After Docking at Arcturus Station, the Normandy also had new Protocol Droids and Astro-droids which were currently in the Droid repair zone and some crew members were assigned to keep these droids operational. They would be led by a female Rodian called Ci Chos.

The final three Officers in the room were Jass Gur, a male Kel Dor who was the ship's fuel officer and would handle the fuel situation and make sure the fuel flowed properly throughout the ship. And since the Normandy was a military vessel that would be sent on important operations, several soldiers had been assigned to assist. These soldiers were led by a male Zabrak called Verbro. There was also a female Mirialan called Pekue Bez who would be the Mako Driver for missions.

"Thank you all for coming" Shepard greeted them all "Now I'm sure that you've all been briefed on what our mission is before you were assigned on board."

Verbro spoke up "The Normandy has been assigned to stop a rogue Spectre called Saren." He stated "And we also have to stop his Geth forces."

"That's right" Shepard stated "Currently, we have no idea on where he is but we have an idea on where to find someone who does. I'll let our new Spectre ally tell us who."

Spectre Bau was also in the room and spoke up "Saren wasn't working alone. Audio footage found shows that an Asari Matriarch called Benezia was working with Saren and this Benezia has a daughter called Liara. That's who we are going to find."

"We currently have word that Liara is working at a Prothean Dig site on the planet Therum" Shepard stated "We're set a course and we are to located Dr T'soni and extract her from the planet for questioning. If she co-operates then we're fine but if she doesn't, then we have permission to stun."

"How will be leading the mission?" Pekue asked

"The dig site is located far from the Therum colony so we'll be taking the Mako." Shepard stated "I'll be leading the mission."

That shocked the crew members and Verbro spoke up "Commander, I don't want to disagree with you but the captain's place is one the bridge."

"Not this captain" Shepard stated "Driver Pekue will be with me since we'll need the Mako but we'll have to make the last part on foot so I'll be taking a team down with me."

"Who will go with you?" Zitt asked

"A report from Therum has stated that Geth have been sighted landing on Therum but away from the main colony. So I'll need some firepower. Ashley Williams and Kaidan Alenko will come with me since they're experience in fighting Geth. Since this involves the Rogue Spectre, our friend Spectre Bau will also come with us."

"The Mako can have eight people in it" Pekue stated "So far that's five of us plus an extra seat for T'soni. Is there anyone else who we'll be taking?"

"Since we're fighting Geth, it may be best to have a Geth expert with us" Bau suggested

Shepard agreed "Our Quarian friend Tali will come as well and we'll also bring Wrex. He is an expert soldier from what I've been told."

Verbro looked conflicted "Commander, I've brought several good marines with me for the Normandy. You can always use them as well."

Shepard shook her head "If there are more Geth here then I need you and your marines to protect Therum colony. We can't have another colony destroyed and Therum is a small colony." She then looked at Zitt "And since you're our Gunnery Officer, I need you to make sure our weapons are online for if we have to fight back with the Normandy."

"Understood" Zitt stated "I'll get to work on the guns right away."

"So do you all understand our mission?" Shepard asked and the crew nodded "Dismissed, we'll be approaching Therum in several hours."

...

Several hours later, the Normandy exited Lightspeed in the Knossos system in the Artemis Tau Cluster. The Artemis Tau cluster was on the edge of the Milky Way and had four systems, each named after an Ancient Greek state. The cluster was under Republic control but there were many Prothean ruins across the planets which interested historians in the Citadel and they were allowed to study these ruins but they had to obey Republic law and accept Republic protection. The Knossos system had 5 planets and two Asteroid belts; this system was named after the Ancient city of Knossos from Earth which was once a city in from the Minoan civilization. Every planet except for one was named after a place from the Minoan civilization.

The first planet in the Knossos system was known as Phaistos named after an ancient city on the island of Crete. This planet was a small terrestrial planet with an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and xenon. With a scorching hot surface made of sulphur, this planet is of little interest to anyone. Then between Phaistos and the next planet which was Therum, there was an Asteroid belt where miners from Therum were mining an Asteroid that had a large deposit of Platinum. The third planet was known as Zakros, a terrestrial world with a nitrogen methane atmosphere. The surface was made of thin water ice and would not support the weight of a landed ship so this planet was also of little interest. The next planet had a lot of interest but not for settlement, the planet was known as Armeni which had a thin atmosphere of krypton and xenon. But the planet seemed to be the home of an ancient space faring species called the Zeioph and there were many crypts buried below the surface. This led many Republic universities to lead archaeological excavations to research this civilization which meant there was more interest for settlement on Therum since it was the closest habitual world. The final planet was a small Hydrogen-Helium gas giant known as Archanes which had grown to become a fuel deposit for Therum. The second Asteroid belt was between Armeni and Archanes; Pressly reported that the systems had detected an anomaly in the belt so Shepard decided that she would check it out after their mission on Therum.

The planet Therum was the second planet in the Knossos system and the only inhabited one. Therum had a small colony with only 34,000 inhabitants most of which lived in the colony's capital city of Nova Yekaterinburg. Because the colony was small, it was not powerful enough to have a seat on the Senate and it was also of little importance due to its distance. Therum was rich in minerals which were often mined by corporations and rich in Prothean ruins which interested researchers and these factors had allowed the colony to grow when it was first founded in 2167 but this was where the Normandy's first mission was.

...

Shepard stood on the bridge as the Normandy began to approach the planet Therum where Luke was running a scan of the planet.

"Commander, our Scanners have detected Geth presence on Therum but away from the main city." Luke stated

"That's good" Shepard stated "Luke contact Doka, ask her if the Therum leadership have been informed about the Geth and ask them about Dr T'soni."

Then Doka's voice came over the radio "I already did Commander" she called "They are away of the Geth and are on alert but the military here is small."

Shepard looked at Luke "Tell Verbro to prepare his men to help defend the colony if we have to and get the shuttle prepared."

"Understood Commander" Luke stated and he left his seat to get the Shuttle ready for launching with the Marines.

Then Doka called over the radio again "Commander, Therum Council have informed me that Dr T'soni was in the colony but recently left for a Prothean ruin. I'm sending the coordinates to Joker."

Joker looked at the coordinates and sighed "Oh man!" he groaned "The coordinates are in an area where these a large number of Geth and near a lava flow from an old volcano."

"Then we'll have to take the Mako" Shepard stated and looked at Joker "Joker, tell Pekue, Wrex, Tali, Ashley, Kaidan and Bau to meet me in the Hanger."

"Will do Commander" he stated and then Shepard left.

...

Soon Shepard and the crew she had selected were down in the Normandy's hanger where they began to climb into the Mako. She then saw Luke along with Verbro and his marines getting into the Shuttle to head towards the main colony. As the Normandy began to enter Therum's atmosphere, main hanger doors began to open and the blue shields appeared where the Hanger doors had been. These shields were designed to stop enemy fire but allow the shuttles and Mako to leave. This meant that the crew did not have to empty the hanger each time the Shuttle or Mako had to leave.

Pekue sat in the driver's seat "Is everyone secure?" she asked as she turned the Maki's engines on "This is going to be bumpy."

"We're all secure here" Wrex stated

"Alright, here we go, launching now" Pekue stated and then the Mako began to move forward and out of the hanger doors where it quickly fell towards the surface. "Brace for impact" she called as the Mako got close to the surface and everyone held their breath as Pekue activated the jet fires which gave the Mako some lift as it landed hard on the ground where it bumped several times before stopping. "We're down, moving towards the Ruins."

Then Joker called over the radio "Commander, we're detecting a signal down in the ruins, but the road there has Geth all over the area."

"Good thing we brought the Mako" Shepard commented "Ashley, Kaidan, get on the machine guns, I'll handle the main turret." She looked at Tali "Tali, I need you to advisor on the different Geth here."

"Just shoot at them" Wrex stated "Most Gath have thin armour which this tank's turrets will rip through."

Tali sighed "The Geth Hunters have camouflage suits and have more armour than most Geth. The Geth Primes are the leaders but the large cannon will be needed for a Geth Colossus or a Geth Armature. And a Geth Juggernaut will be hard to take down."

"Just let me handle the driving" Pekue stated "You handle the shooting of Geth."

The Mako began to drive along the ledge which surrounded a large lava lake and when Geth were spotted, Ashley and Kaidan fired their guns at them and whenever one of the larger Geth units were spotted, Shepard fired the main cannon at them.

But then Joker called over the radio "Shepard you need to stop!" he called and Pekue quickly applied the brakes and the Mako stopped moving as it ran over a Geth trooper.

Shepard called Joker back "What's going on Joker?" she demanded

"Our scanners have highlighted a large Geth presence ahead in the one area plus they've set up cannons which will rip the Mako to pieces. Move back and Zitt's going to fire the Normandy's cannons at the area. Tell us when you're clear."

"Alright Joker, just make sure you're ready to fire" Shepard called back

...

Above Therum, the Normandy was currently holding position right above the area where the Scanners had picked up several Geth stationary cannons which they were preparing to fire. Gunnery Officer Zitt stood inside the Gunnery control rooms where all the controls for the Normandy's weapons were. There weren't many weapons on the Normandy because the Normandy was a Frigate but she still had weapons to defend herself. The Normandy had several anti starship cannons for fighting off enemy fighters and also several missile launchers. But the weapon that was being prepared was the main cannon, the Normandy had a powerful turbolaser cannon which was used to strike an enemy ship at a certain point and this cannon was below the Normandy's body.

"Do we have the coordinates Hadley?" Zitt asked

The crewmember in question, Richard Hadley looked at his officer "Yes we do?" he stated "The weapon is primed as well, we're just waiting for Shepard to get out of the way." As he was saying this, the main cannon were being lowered from its holding place.

Then Shepard's voice came over the radio "Normandy, this is Shepard, we're away from the area, and you may fire when ready."

Zitt turned to the crewmembers "You heard her, fire the cannon."

The Normandy's turbolaser cannon began firing several shots towards Therum.

...

Back on Therum, the crew in the Mako watched as the powerful shots came from the Normandy where they impacted on the surface and had to cover their eyes from the blast. When the blast cleared and they could see again, Joker called over the radio again "The scanners don't pick anything up in that area, the cannons are gone, you can carry on now."

"Right" Shepard responded and looked at Pekue "Carry on driving towards the ruins."

The Mako began driving again and passed the area where the Normandy had blasted and saw the smoking remains of the Geth Turrets and smashed pieces of Geth units. As the Mako came across more Geth, Ashley and Kaidan fired at them while Shepard fired the cannon at the larger units. Eventually they came close to the ruins but the path ahead was blocked by fallen rocks which may have been made by the Geth.

"Sorry Commander" Pekue stated "But you'll have to go on by foot from here."

"Alright" Shepard stated "Pekue, keep the Mako ready for when we return."

Then Shepard along with Tali, Wrex, Ashley, Kaidan and Bau exited the Mako and carried on foot.

"Careful Commander" Ashley stated "There may be Geth around here."

"Hold on" Bau stated as he pulled out a large Black Widow Sniper rifle which was one of the best Sniper Rifles in the Galaxy and one that only a Spectre could afford "Let me see" he knelt down near some rocks and looked ahead "I see some Geth Snipers keeping watch on that cliff nearby."

Shepard pulled out her own M-92 Mantis Sniper Rifle "We can take them out together" she stated and she knelt down and took aim "I'll take the one of the left, you take the one on the right" they both fired at the same time and took out the Geth straight away.

They quickly moved forward and weren't seen since they took out the Geth snipers which were the lookout. But they saw several Geth Soldiers and several small Geth turrets.

Tali had an idea "Shepard" she whispered so she didn't alert the Geth "I can hack one of those turrets and it will attack the remaining Geth."

"Do it" Shepard stated and Tali activated her Omi tool and one of the Geth drones suddenly began firing on the other Geth. Then Shepard's team came out of their hiding place and quickly took care of the remaining Geth.

With the Geth clear, they now had a path towards the ruins where Dr T'soni was. But when they arrived at the entrance to the ruins, Bau had a bad feeling "Something's wrong Commander" he stated "There should be more Geth here at the entrance to the ruins."

Then Ashley heard a noise and looked at a nearby set of scaffolding "What was that?" she questioned

But then they heard a rumbling noise and as they looked up, they saw a Geth Dropship drop more Geth units and one of them was a massive walker like unit.

"Colossus!" Tali yelled "Take cover!" the Colossus quickly began firing at them and they all took cover near a wall. But then a sniper shot nearly hit Kaidan and they saw a Geth unit on the roof of the scaffolding "That's a Geth Ghost unit, a stealth unit" Tali added

"I've got it!" Bau yelled and fired a shot from his sniper which struck the Ghost and destroyed it.

"Well done! Now take out that Colossus!" Shepard yelled and then they all began to focus their fire on the Colossus except Wrex who took out the remaining Geth soldiers using his Claymore Shotgun. Ashley and Shepard fired all the bullets from their Avenger Assault Rifles at the Colossus with help from Wrex and his shotgun. Bau used his sniper rifle and Kaidan used his biotics to throw junk at it. Tali wasn't much use against the firepower so she hid for the moment.

But no matter what they did, the Colossus wouldn't stop and it often just repaired itself "This isn't working!" Bau yelled and looked at Tali "Do you know a way of taking this thing down?"

Tali thought "You need to damage its armour" she stated "That's the best way to damage it."

"I'm on it!" Wrex yelled and threw a Grenade at the Colossus and when it exploded, it stunned it for a brief moment and then Bau fired his Sniper at the area where the explosion had damaged. The Colossus began wobbling before collapsing and the light in its head went down.

Ashley sighed in relief "Well now that's done, we should go find Dr T'soni."

"Agreed" Shepard stated "But tread carefully, we don't know what other surprises are waiting for us here."

"Dr T'soni might also be working with Saren and her mother" Wrex stated "She might have set the Geth up to stop us getting her."

"We'll just have to wait and see" Bau stated "Regardless, we need Dr T'soni alive."

They then entered the entrance to the ruins.

...

The ruins they were in didn't look like Prothean ruins, in fact, they looked more like an old mine.

"Are you sure we're in the right place?" Wrex asked

"This doesn't like a Prothean ruin" Bau added

Ashley looked around "This might have been an old mine until they tunnelled into some ruins" she suggested

"Ashley's right" Shepard stated "I see some ruins ahead but the way into them looks blocked by some kind of force field."

"Yes but by whom, Dr T'soni or the Geth?" Tali stated

Kaidan soon spotted some Geth and threw them over the balcony with his biotics "Something tells me that Dr T'soni is behind that barrier since there are Geth out here."

"They may be scouts however" Bau stated "But I think we're about to find out."

They went down an elevator to the next level down and soon arrived at the Prothean ruins where Ashley looked out two Geth Assault drones that were trying to break through the barrier. They then took another Elevator which took them deeper into the ruins. But it seemed that the Geth had attacked this place as the Elevator stopped working and they had to jump down to a damaged walkway.

It was then that they heard someone calling "Hello, can someone help me please?"

They quickly arrived in front of a barrier where they saw a young blue skinned Asari trapped in some kind of bubble. The Asari looked up and saw them "Can you hear me out there? I'm trapped, I need help?"

Bau looked at the man "Are you Dr Liara T'soni?" he asked

"I am?" the Asari stated "Who are you?"

"I am Spectre Jondum Bau" Bau replied "I was sent here with a team from the Republic to find you, we have questions for you."

"Wait!" Liara gasped "What do you need me for? I've done nothing wrong?"

"Your mother is working with a Rogue Spectre called Saren" Shepard stated "The council thought you might have some idea on what he's up to."

"My mother?" Liara questioned "I haven't been in contact with my mother in years. But my research may be why the Geth attacked this place; they may be after my research."

Tali looked at Shepard "Saren was looking for something called the Conduit" she stated "Maybe he thinks Dr T'soni knows where it is?"

"The conduit?" Liara questioned "I have no idea what that is. Look I can answer your questioned but you need to get me out of this."

Kaidan looked at Liara "How did you get trapped in there?" he asked

Liara sighed "It's my own fault, when the Geth first attacked, I activated the tower's defences, and I knew the barrier curtains would keep them out. But I must have accidently pressed something that I shouldn't and now I'm trapped."

"How are we going to get through this barrier?" Wrex asked "These barriers don't let anyone through."

Shepard looked over the barrier and saw an old mining laser "Maybe we can use that own mining laser to tunnel under the barrier."

"That might work" Liara stated "But watch out, there is a Krogan working with the Geth."

"Must be some mercenary that Saren hired" Wrex stated

"We'll get you out of there as soon as we get passed this barrier" Shepard stated

"Thank you" Liara stated "But please hurry."

Shepard and her team took another Elevator down to the bottom of the ruins and found the old mining laser and Shepard looked at Tali "Tali, you're the best at this type of work. See if you can activate it."

"Will do Shepard." Tali stated and then went onto the controls and began working on them to try and reactivate them. But then a sniper snot ricocheted off the laser which made everyone duck in shock.

"More Geth, over there!" Kaidan yelled

"I've got it!" Bau yelled and fired his sniper which took one out and Wrex took out the other.

"Hold on" Tali hissed "I've got it!" the laser then activated and fired a large beam which struck the ground under the laser and fired for several minutes until the beam ran out of energy and faded and left a massive hole under the ruins.

"That did it" Ashley stated "Now let's get Dr T'soni and get out of here."

The group went through the tunnel they had made and into the actual part of the Prothean ruins. Shepard was glad that Liara had reactivated the controls as this Prothean tower was massive and now the old elevator still worked even after 50,000 years. Soon they arrived back at the area where Liara was.

Liara was happy to see them "I see the mining laser worked" she stated "Now please, get me out of here before more Geth come. That control panel over there should shut down this containment field." Shepard walked over to the controls and pressed the button, then the energy bubble that held Liara deactivated and Liara dropped to the floor and pushed herself up "Thank you for that."

"Well, now that we've got our Asari friend, does anyone have an idea on how we get out of here?" Kaidan asked

"We can't go out the way we came." Ashley added "The elevator we took before broke."

"There is an elevator back in the centre of this tower." Liara stated "At least, I think it's an elevator. It should get us back to the surface. Come on." They quickly went to the centre of the tower where Liara looked at them "I still don't understand what's going on? Why would the Geth be after me and how is my mother involved?"

"Saren is responsible for a Geth attack on the Republic colony of Eden Prime where a Prothean beacon was recovered along with a Prothean Stasis pod" Bau stated

"A Prothean Stasis Pod?" Liara gasped "No one has ever managed to find one of them."

"Saren activated the Beacon and now has the information stored on it." Shepard stated "But I was also exposed to that beacon and now I have the information which shows some kind of vision. We can explain more on the ship."

"There is one thing we do know" Tali stated "Saren is looking for something called the Conduit. You're a Prothean expert so he may think you know where to find it."

"That's a good suggestion but Saren may have also wanted to use Liara to keep Benezia in line if she gets any ideas" Bau suggested

"The conduit?" Liara questioned "But I don't know..." before Liara could continue, there was a loud rumble and the floor began to shake.

"What was that?" Wrex asked

Liara gasped in worry "Oh no!" she gasped, "The mining laser must have trigged seismic activity here. These ruins are unstable; we have to get out of here now!"

The elevator was moving slowly "Can this thing go any faster!" Wrex groaned as the elevator began to move up.

Eventually, Shepard heard something on her radio and she activated it and heard Pekue calling out in a panic "Commander, what's going on, the ground is shaking here."

"We're suffering an Earthquake Pekue, get out of there, I'll contact Joker to pick you up." Shepard stated

"Alright Commander" Pekue answered back "But watch out, I just saw a shuttle land near the entrance to the ruins."

"Don't worry about us Pekue" Shepard responded "We'll be fine, we'll take that enemy shuttle." She then contacted Joker "Joker come in, these ruins are collapsing and Pekue's in trouble, pick her up, we'll be coming in using a Shuttle that a Krogan has been using."

"Alright Commander" Joker called over the radio "Just be careful."

The elevator carried on up the ruins but when they came to the top, they found a Krogan Battlemaster and several Geth soldiers waiting for them "Surrender" the Krogan demanded "Or don't, that will be more fun."

Shepard glared at the Krogan "We don't have time for this!" she hissed "Kill this bastard!" everyone got their weapons out.

...

Up above Therum, the Normandy's hanger opened and a special claw weapon was aimed "I've got a lock on the Mako" a crewmember called Zach Mathews stated

"Fire" another crewmember called Jennifer Goldstein ordered and the claw fired and attached itself to the Mako. Then the Normandy's controls began pulling the Mako back up with help from the Mako's vertical jets and the Mako was soon back into the Hanger "What about the Commander?" Goldstein asked

"They said she'll be coming in using a Shuttle."

...

Shepard and Ashley had used their assault rifles to quickly take out the Geth along with Bau and Tali hacked one of the Assault drones. But the Krogan was much tougher, their natural tough skin was hard to injure and most weapons were ineffective against him. Kaidan's biotics did no good either. But Wrex fared better since he was a Krogan too and knew what to do. He managed to knock the Krogan Battlemaster to the ground and punch him several times before shooting him in the head with his shotgun.

When the battle was over, Liara sighed "We should get out of here now before this place collapses."

"There's a shuttle waiting for us outside!" Shepard shouted now hurry"

The group quickly ran back the way they came along the platforms and up through the mine entrance but had to keep their balance as there were more shakes which nearly made them fall over the barrier. Shepard took the rear to make sure everyone got out. Eventually, they all made it back to the Shuttle that the Krogan had used "Does anyone know how to fly this thing?" Ashley asked

Tali sighed "I've seen one of these shuttles before, I'm not the best but I'm the only one who has an idea." Tali carefully activated the controls and the shuttle lifted off the group and headed back to the Normandy. As the Shuttle left Therum, the ruins collapsed into the group as a ravine was formed destroying the ancient ruins.

...

Later, they were all back on the Normandy and leaving Therum after Luke had returned with Verbro and his marines.

Shepard and the team she had taken down to Therum were not sitting in the conference room along with Garrus who had joined them for this meeting. "That was too close Commander, just a few more seconds and you would have been caught in that destruction. You're not trained to fight in exploding volcanoes, just for future reference." Joker called over the radio.

Liara was not amused "We almost died out there and your pilot is making Jokes?" she stated

"It's a coping mechanism" Shepard stated "You get used to it and it helps keep people happy and on mission."

"I see, it must be a human thing" Liara stated "I don't have a lot of experience with your kind of species Commander. But I am grateful you saved me, not just from the volcano but also from the Geth, if you hadn't shown up they would have killed me or dragged me off to Saren."

"What did Saren want with you anyway?" Bau asked "He seemed to think you were the key to this Conduit, do you know anything about it?"

Liara sighed "Not much sadly" she responded "I only know that it is connected to the Prothean extinction. That is my real area of expertise. I have spent the last fifty years trying to find out what happened to them."

"Fifty years?" Kaidan questioned "Just how old are you?"

Liara sighed "I hate to admit it but I am only one hundred and six" she replied

Ashley laughed "Damn, I hope I look good when I'm your age." Thanks to Chiss technology, humans now had a longer lifespan and on average could live up to one hundred and twenty years now on average but they still got very old at eighty years old."

"A century might seem like a long time for a short lived species like you" Liara stated "But among the Asari, I'm barely considered more than a child. That's why my research hasn't received the attention it deserves, because of my youth, other Asari scholars tent to dismiss my theories about why the Protheans vanish. There are many different theories about why the Protheans vanished but there is little evidence to support them. The Protheans left very little behind, it is like someone did not want the mystery solved, like someone came after the Protheans and cleansed the galaxy of clues. But here is the incredibly part, according to me research, the Protheans were not the first galactic civilization to mysteriously vanish, this cycle began long before the Protheans."

That confused Shepard "What cycle, what are you talking about?"

"The galaxy seems to have been built around a cycle of extinction" Liara answered "Each time a great Civilization rises up, it is suddenly and violently cast down and only ruins survive. The Protheans rose up from a single world to a galactic Empire which spanned the known galaxy but even they climbed to the top on the remains of those that came before. The Prothean's greatest achievements, the mass relays and the Citadel, are based off technology of great civilizations of those that came before. And then just like the species that came before them, the Protheans vanished and I have dedicated my research to find out why."

Shepard looked at Liara "I believe that the Protheans didn't just vanish but they were hunted down and exterminated by a race of sentient machines known as the Reapers."

"The Reapers?" Liara questioned "But I have never heard of them, what evidence do you have to support this?"

"On Eden Prime there was a damaged Prothean beacon which has imprinted a vision into my brain" Shepard responded "I saw the Protheans being hunted down by a race of machines that Saren seems to call Reapers but I couldn't quite understand the vision completely."

Liara gasped "I know these beacons; they were designed to transmit information directly into the minds of the user. Finding one that still works in incredibly rare but not as rare as finding a Stasis Pod like you told me earlier. I can see why the Geth attacked Eden Prime; the chance to capture one of these beacons is worth the risk. You said that you couldn't understand the vision completely; it could be because the beacon was damaged or because they were designed to work with Prothean minds so the vision will be unclear. I am amazed that you were able to make sense of it, I've heard stories of users of these beacons going crazy or have their minds destroyed, you must be remarkably strong willed Commander."

"This is all very interesting but it isn't helping us locate Saren or this Conduit?" Bau stated

"Yes, I'm sorry" Liara apologized "My scientific curiosity got the better of me. Unfortunately I don't have information that I can give you to locate Saren"

"I don't why Saren wanted you out of the picture" Shepard stated "But I think we'll be better off if we brought you along."

"Thank you Commander" Liara stated as she stood up "Saren might come after me again and I cannot think of anywhere safer than on your ship. And my knowledge on the Protheans might come in useful later."

"And her biotics will come in handy when the fighting starts" Wrex added

"Good to have you on the team Liara" Shepard stated

Liara smiled "Thank you Commander" she stated but then clutched her head "I'm sorry Commander, I'm feeling a bit lightheaded, I just need a bit of a rest."

"You should get some rest" Shepard stated and then she looked at the rest of the team "I need time to think about what we're going to do next but while we're here in the Artemis Tau cluster, I think we should finish off any missions we have here such as looking for Admiral Kohoku's missing marines. But for now, dismissed." Everyone left the room and went back to their areas while Shepard started to think about their next move, they had rescued Dr T'soni but Saren will still out there and they still had no idea on where to find him.

**Chapter end:**

**Notes: Well another chapter completely and I've introduced the Normandy's crew. I have also rewritten the timeline and codex to introduce some new species into the Republic so you might want to reread those two chapters to see what I've introduced but they will be the only species I introduced until the Mass Effect 2 storyline. Next chapter will be a while because I am currently working on my other work and I'm going on holiday soon so you may have to be patient but I will try and update again before I go on holiday.**


	9. Missing troops and Diplomacy:

**Missing troops and Diplomacy:**

Later after Shepard had finished writing her report on Therum and sent it to Republic Command, she decided that she would check on Spectre Bau and see how the Citadel was reacting to their mission on Therum. She entered Bau's chambers to see Spectre Bau speaking with holograms of the Council members.

"The Geth were crawling all over those ruins" Bau spoke to them "We were lucky to have made it out of there alive."

"I understand Spectre Bau" Councillor Tevos spoke up "We're just not too pleased about having to lose those Prothean ruins."

"Spectre Bau is right though" Valern stated "The mission always comes first. So do you trust Dr T'soni?"

"She claims that she knows nothing about what Saren or her mother are planning and I believe her" Bau stated "She may be considered little more by a child by Asari but she's still old enough to make her own choices. Saren may also have planned to use her to keep Benezia in check."

"Your mission went well but it still brings us no closer to finding Saren or stopping him" Sparatus stated "We hope to hear from your when you send your next report."

Bau nodded "Spectre Bau out" he stated and he turned off the hologram and turned to see Shepard "Commander Shepard" he greeted "I was just sending my report on Therum."

"How are they reacting." she asked

Bau sighed "They insisted that Liara be placed under constant watch but I'm sure she's not involved with Saren. If she was, he Geth wouldn't have attacked those ruins, she would have gone with them." He then noticed Shepard's look "Is there something you need?"

"There is something else actually" Shepard stated and she pulled out a medallion from her pocket. Just after the mission on Therum, a small team led by Verbro had been sent out to check out the anomaly they found on the Asteroid and they found an abandoned Salarian fighter where a small medallion had been found "I was hoping you could tell me what this is?"

Bau took the medallion and checked it out before looking back at Shepard "This is a League of One Medallion" he stated "Before we joined the Citadel, they were a small reconnaissance team that dealt in espionage and assassination and they were never more than a dozen strong. After we joined the Citadel, they League went rogue after we revealed their identities and after the Salarian Tasks group was formed, the League of One was hunted down. Now these medallions are collectibles."

"Well that's some story" Shepard stated "Well I better get back up to the bridge; we're due to reach the Athens system soon."

Shepard then left Bau's room and went back up to the bridge.

...

The Normandy soon arrived at the Athens systems. There wasn't really anything of interest but this was a stop point before heading to the Sparta System to search for Admiral Kohoku's missing Marines. This system also had a small colony on the planet Proteus but just like Therum, this colony was small with a population of 12,000. Most of this colony was also oceanic and the intense heat caused large numbers of typhoons which made settling here unappealing. There was also a small hydrogen helium gas giant called Circe which had been turned yellow due to traces of sulphur and chlorine but this planet was also home to a few Helium-3 refineries for Proteus. The remaining three planets of the Athens system were known as Pharos, Nausicaa and Salamis which were of little interest although a scan on Pharos found an abandoned facility on the planet's moon where the recon team led by Vardos found some sort of Turian Insignias which Shepard decided she would talk to Garrus about. After finishing up in the system, the Normandy jumped to head over to the Sparta System.

...

After leaving the Athens system, Shepard decided she would go and see Garrus and ask him about the insignias they had found on Pharos' moon. She went over to the barracks where Garrus was staying and found Garrus examining his sniper rifle. Garrus turned and saw Shepard walking over to him "Hey Commander" he greeted "Thanks for bringing me on board. I knew working with you and Spectre Bau on a mission like this would be better than a life at C-Sec."

Shepard looked at him "Have you ever worked with a Spectre before?" she asked

"Well no" Garrus admitted "But I've heard all about them. In C-Sec we hear stories of how Spectres make their own rules and are free to handle things their way. At C-Sec you're buried by rules, the dam bureaucrats are always on your back."

"I have heard stories like that from Arcturus Guards." Shepard admitted "Stories about how Senators bribe the guards to ignore certain things."

"That's my point" Garrus argued "I hate it when a criminal gets away and then the rules prevent me from hunting them and then criminals get away with their crimes and sometimes, their punishment isn't harsh enough and as soon as they are released, they go back to their crimes. I've arrested several con people multiply times as they get released quickly and go back to conning people as soon as they're out. People like my father and Detective Chellick are always people who go by the rules and sometimes are unable to handle things, to them protocol and procedure come first so that's why I left."

Shepard caught on to that "I didn't know your father was in C-Sec?" she stated

"My father was one of the best" Garrus claimed "I always saw his face on the net when they arrested a major criminal. My problems weren't bad at first but as I rose through the ranks, I got held up more and more by red tape. But leaving C-Sec has hit my father pretty hard, he thinks I'm acting too rash and fears I may end up just like Saren."

"Sometimes parents are worried that they're children are going to get killed if they're not careful." Shepard claimed "My mother was proud when I got my position but was always worried that I could get myself killed if I acted too rash."

"I guess you're right about my father just being worried about me" Garrus claimed "Anyway, is there something you need? I don't think you came here just to hear about my family situation?"

Shepard brought out the Turian Insignias and showed it to Garrus "Just recently, our recon team found this at an old base, it looks Turian so do you think you can tell me what it is?"

Garrus took the insignias and gasped "I know what this is; this is a lost Insignias from the Magna colony. I'm not sure if you know the story but back when the Asari were founding the Citadel, at least we think it's around that time, the Turians were in a state of civil war. At that time, we had found several Mass Relays and created a number of colonies. Now many of these colonies were led by local chieftains and they distanced themselves from the Hierarchy and became very isolated. The colonists even began wearing facial tattoos which would get them attacked by colonists from a different colony. Eventually the colonies began fighting each other and some were completely destroyed in the fighting. The Hierarchy stayed out until the remaining colonies were too weak and then they quickly forced the remaining colonies back under the leadership of the Hierarchy. It took many years for the animosity between colonists to fade but many still wear their facial markings. These insignias are from Turian colonies and outposts that no longer exists, if they are found, it would help our historians with understanding the war."

"I'll keep an eye out for more but our mission comes first" Shepard stated

"The mission always comes first" Garrus smiled "Although I would like to come down on this next mission since I didn't have the chance on Therum."

Shepard nodded "I'll allow you on this one." She stated and then she left.

...

The Normandy arrived in the Sparta System which was home to five planets but unlike the Athens and Knossos systems, there were no colonies in this system. None of the planets were suitable for habitation. The planet Altaaya had a frozen sandstone surface, the gas giant Ontamalca caused meteor showers on the planet Edolus, Tremanre was covered in molten lava and the planet Alsages was made of ice water and too far for habitation. This system was also home to a battle during the Verge War as during the war, the Batarian pirate Eluam Ran'perah was caught with his ship Turerron and was forced to land on Alsages for drive discharge and was surrounded by a small Republic fleet led by the Star Destroyer Hyderabad and Eluam refused to surrender and as he tried to leave the surface, his ship was destroyed. Eluam had been a pirate that the Republic had been hunting for some time after several attacks on small colonies but after a failed attack on Proteus, he was forced to flee to Alsages.

But there was one thing of interest in the Asteroid belt. Presley's scans picked up something in the Asteroid belt which showed signs of life. Verbro once again led a small recon team and found a bio-dome and while there were no signs of life, they did find a Prothean data disc inside a data console.

Then when the Normandy got closer to the planet Edolus, Doka contacted Shepard "Commander, I'm picking up static from Edolus' surface." She stated "It looks like an automated distress beacon."

"Looks like we've found Admiral Kohoku's missing troops" Shepard responded "I'm taking the Mako down to the surface." She then thought about whom to take with her on this mission "Tell Garrus, Bau, Wrex, Liara along with Verbro to come down to the Hanger to meet up with Pekue."

"Will do Commander" Doka replied.

...

Soon, the Normandy started entering Edolus' atmosphere and then the Mako was dropped from the Hanger and soon landed on Edolus' surface with the crew including two marines that Verbro brought with him who were called Bethany Westmoreland and Sarah Campbell.

They had to land a distance away from where the Distress beacon was but Pekue soon began driving towards the beacon because if Admiral Kohoku's missing troops were anywhere, they would be near that beacon. But along the way, the Mako's scanners began picking something up "Commander" Pekue stated "The scanners are picking something up ahead. Should I stop to see what it is?" she asked

Shepard knew that they had plenty of time "Alright Pekue" she stated "But I'll just take Bau and Wrex out with me to check it out."

They soon arrived at where the anomaly was but when Shepard, Bau and Wrex left the Mako, they found that the anomaly was just a body.

"This is what the scanners were picking up?" Wrex questioned "A mummified Salarian."

The body was that of a Salarian which had clearly been here for many years but the body was near a crashed escape pod. Bau examined to corpse and found an ID tag on him and when he looked at it, he gasped "This body belongs to Captain Milon, the body to too decomposed to identify but this ID tag claims it's him."

"Who's Captain Milon?" Shepard asked

Bau looked at Shepard "You remember when I told you about the League of One and how the new Salarian Tasks group was ordered to hunt them down?" he questioned "Captain Milon was one of these hunters and it seems that he must have crashed here on this planet and died. This ID tag will at least be able to tell his descendents about what happened to him?"

"Well, now that we're finished here, we should head on over to that Distress Beacon." Shepard stated and the three of them got back into the Mako."

...

The Mako soon arrived at the area where the Distress beacon was and the Mako stopped right near the beacon but even before Shepard's team left the Mako, they already had a bad feeling about this. The area around the beacon looked like a battlefield, there were bodies of soldiers as well as destroyed equipment such as HAVw A6 Juggernaut tank which had been flipped over several times and there were fires over the tank. There was also a smashed 2-M hover tank.

As Shepard left the tank with Bau, Garrus, Verbro, his marines and Wrex, Garrus looked at the bodies of the fallen marines "These look like Republic troops" he stated "It looks like we found what happened to Admiral Kohoku's missing men."

Wrex looked at the beacon "It looks like they were lured here by the beacon." He stated "But I still don't see what could have caused this, these troops looked like they were heavily armoured with that tank" he looked at the Juggernaut "What did attack them."

"Whatever it was, it might still be around here" Verbro stated as he looked around with Westmoreland and Campbell with their rifles ready.

Then the ground began shaking beneath them which made everyone reach their weapons and began looking around. The rumbling got louder until it appeared from underground. A large snake like creature that was covered in armoured scales and was nearly 30 meters long burst from the ground and threw the smashed 2-M hover tank aside. Shepard and her team looked at the creature and saw that the head of the creature had blue acid dripping from it.

Wrex knew what it was "Thresher Maw!" he yelled "Take cover!"

The Thresher Maw spat acid which made the whole team run aside as the Thresher Maw burrowed deep underground again.

"Everyone back into the Mako!" Sheppard yelled and the team ran back into the Mako and Shepard looked at Pekue "Drive, Garrus get on the machine gun, I'll take the turret." The Mako began driving away as the Thresher Maw appeared behind the Mako and Pekue was able to get the Mako moving and out of the way of the blast. Shepard looked at Wrex "Okay Wrex, do you have any idea on how to deal with this thing?"

Wrex looked at where Shepard was "Krogan use Thresher Maws to test Krogan but we just have to survive, not kill them. But I was able to kill mine during my trial, the cannon can kill it but it will take several shots, aim for the mouth just before he spits his acid."

"Understood" Shepard noted and looked as the Thresher Maw appeared again. Shepard lined up the cannon and fired but she missed the first shot which hit the armoured scales. Garrus was able to keep the creature above ground using the Mako's machine gun which allowed Shepard to fire a second shot which did hit the mouth and caused the Maw to freeze before burrowing back underground.

Wrex looked at Pekue "Drive in a zigzag" he stated "It will confuse it."

Pekue did as Wrex suggested and then the Maw reappeared and fired a blast which missed thanks to the zigzag driving and Shepard was able to score another hit on the Maw's mouth. The Maw began shaking around and then Shepard fired again which went right through the jaw of the Maw and out of the top and the Maw fell forwards dead.

With the Maw defeated, the Mako drove back to the Distress beacon where Shepard fired the cannon which destroyed the beacon "Now no one will be deceived by that beacon" she stated

Verbro spoke up "This wasn't an accident" he stated "Someone lured these Marines here and then sent the Thresher Maw on them."

"But who would do that?" Garrus asked "This doesn't look like Saren's work, he wouldn't have access to a Republic beacon."

"We need more information on what happened here but Kohoku might know more" Shepard stated and then she went over to the radio "Joker, we've finished the missing and we need picking up. But send the shuttle down here as well; we need to recover these bodies so they can be buried properly."

"Understood Commander" Joker replied over the radio.

...

Later, Shepard and her team were back on the Mako and the dead bodies of the troops had been collected so that they could be returned to Arcturus Station. But just as the Normandy was about to leave, Doka called over the radio "Commander, we've got an incoming transmission from the Citadel, I'm patching it through to you."

Shepard listened as someone called her over the radio "Commander Shepard" the voice replied which belonged to an Asari "My name is Nassana Dantius and I have a job for you if you are willing to take it. My sister Dahlia was captured by mercenaries and they forced me to pay a ransom for it, my family is very wealthy. I transferred the money to the account they requested but they didn't release her and they haven't contacted me since. I've made a terrible mistake, as a diplomat, I am required to report any attempt at extortion to C-Sec immediately. If anyone were to find out about this I could end up in jail. I learnt that you were busy operation around the area where the mercenaries are operation which is in the Macedon system. If you can help take care of these mercenaries, I can pay you good credits and help support the Republic which will be very useful."

The transmission ended and Shepard knew what to do, these mercenaries needed to be taken care of anyway as they could attack the colonies in the cluster so Shepard contacted Joker "Joker, make a jump to the Macedon system, we have a mission to do there."

"Right away Commander." Joker replied.

...

The Macedon system was the final system in the Artemis Tau cluster and was home to four planets but just like Sparta, there were no systems they would be suitable for habitation although there was one system that was a possibility but not for any Republic species. The planet Patavig was covered by a vast sea of liquid ammonia where ammonia life forms have developed. Patavig is inhospitable to most Republic Species but it was suitable for colonization by the Volus and some Volus were in talks about settling on this planet but the problem is that because the Volus are a client species of the Turians, this planet would be under Citadel control which the Senate refused to allow and the Turians were unwilling to allow an independent Volus colony to develop as it may encourage other Volus to break away from the Turians.

The other planets included a large Hydrogen-Helium Gas Giant called Fargeluse, a terrestrial planet called Porolan where the crust was very cold since the star Macedon was very weak but suitable for mining. The scanners picked up a signal and the salvage team led by Verbro found an Ancient Beacon and some sort of Asari writing was found in the storage compartment. Liara had seen these and said that they were the writings from Ancient Asari and were valuable for historical reasons. The final planet was known as Sharjila which was where the Pirate base was. Shepard decided to take a team down and since there would be a fight, she brought Bau, Wrex, Liara and Ashley along with Verbro to clear out this base.

...

The Mako landed on Sharjila and Pekue began the drive towards the Pirate base. The base was located a few clicks north but along the way, they found an abandoned Camp site and Shepard decided to check it out but she would have to do it quick. Even with their pressure suits, the pressure on Sharjila was very strong and they would be unable to remain outside the Mako for long. The camp looked liked it had been abandoned for a long time and it was not clear who lived here. Inside the tent, there was a container held another set of Matriarch Writings, this time written by Matriarch Dilinaga. With the camp cleared, the Mako then carried on towards the base. They soon arrived at the base and it was clear that the slavers were well organised as they had advanced pressure suits which could stand up to the pressure and they had a number of lookouts surrounding the base. But these lookouts were no match for the Mako's cannon and one by one, they took out the Lookouts. With no rocket launchers, the fight was over quickly and then Shepard led the team inside.

The Pirate Base was quite small so the Pirate band was not that big. Most of the base was filled with large crates that may have stolen supplies stored inside as well as some salvaged probes. But even though Shepard's team had taken care of the lookouts, the pirates were ready for them and Shepard realised that one of the lookouts must have radioed to warm to crew inside the base. This pirate crew was made up of humans and Turians and Shepard saw an Asari who looked like she was the leader. They also had several Assault drones which Liara took care of by using her biotics to throw them aside where they smashed against the wall. Up on a balcony above, a few Snipers took position and began firing at Shepard's team so they were unable to move forward and take care of the soldiers on the ground level. Shepard ordered Bau and Verbro's team to take care of them and Bau used his sniper to take out one of the snipers and Liara used her biotics to throw an explosive canister towards the Slavers where Verbro shot it and caused it to explode. With the Snipers taken care of, Ashley and Wrex began firing at the remaining pirates and quickly took care of them. The Pirate leader was still alive and used her own biotics to throw Wrex and Ashley aside before creating a biotic shield which was difficult to take down.

Bau had an idea "Shepard catch!" he shouted and threw Shepard a canister "Use this Wrap ammo, it will wrap those shields" Shepard slotted the wrap ammo into her rifle and began firing it at the Asari. The ammo clearly had an effect as it began causing the biotic barrier to start collapsing until the barrier was broken completely. With the Barrier gone, Verbro and his marines quickly came out of their hiding place and fired at the Asari who was now unable to protect herself and faced a barrage of bullet which soon made her fall backwards dead.

With the fight over, Shepard turned to her team "Now split up and see if we can find our Asari Diplomat's sister and see if there is anything of use." The team began splitting up with Shepard, Wrex and Bau going to the floor above while the others stayed on the ground floor. In a small room on the ground floor, they found several more drones which had been deactivated and Verbro placed explosive charges on them as destroying them would also destroy the base. Verbro also placed charges on the explosive canisters that they found in the main room but there was still no sign of the prisoner.

Up above, Shepard, Wrex and Bau found a small room which looked like it was an office for the leader of the Pirates. In the office, they found a stash of high tech weapons which they decided to bring with them as they included a Krogan Claymore Shotgun which was a very powerful shotgun that Wrex took for himself. There was also an Office safe where they seized the money that the pirates had made which was nearly 10,000 credits which could be useful for them later. But it was on the main computer where Bau made a big discovery "Hey Commander" he called "You might want to check this out, we've been tricked."

"What do you mean?" Shepard asked

"There is no prisoner here" Bau hissed "That Asari we killed here was actually Nassana's sister and Nassana was being blackmailed."

"That lying Bitch!" Wrex yelled "I say that we go have a few words with her when we get back!"

Shepard nodded "Bau, download that evidence and then we've leaving." She then radioed Joker "Joker, this is Shepard, we need a pickup."

"On it Commander, preparing the Normandy for pickup" Joker called back.

Shepard and her crew then left the Pirate base and went back into the Mako where they drove away to the pickup point but not before Verbro pressed the trigger on the detonator which caused the base to explode in a massive fireball. Then after the Mako was picked up, Shepard told Joker to head back to Arcturus Station so they could report their findings. Joker set the coordinates and then the Normandy blasted into hyperspace.

**Chapter end:  
Notes: Well another chapter finished. I'm trying to bring in some of the side quests into the story but I may not be able to bring them all in and they can be difficult to write about. One reviewer, Blaze1992, asked about why the Batarians tried to enslave the Na'vi when they would be unable to survive on other planets, well I didn't really think about that factor but I will explain it in a future chapter as I have plans for a main mission to take place on Pandora and the reason will be explained but to explain it now, the Batarians were also planning on taking over Pandora, not just enslave the Na'vi. Pandora is rich in minerals but the Republic refuses mining on that planet so I just wanted to clear that up. Also while I did bring Yoda into this, the Jedi order is just a name for Republic biotics, there is no light side or dark side of the force and there will be no Sith in this story.**


	10. Return to the Citadel:

**Return to the Citadel:**

Now that Shepard and her team had finished off their business in the Artemis Tau Cluster, Shepard had decided to go back to the Citadel in order to confront this Nassana who had tricked them into killing her sister. Shepard knew that they had to try and hunt down Saren but they currently didn't have any more leads so they would also be going back to Arcturus in order to see if Colonel Yularen had discovered anything that could help them find Saren and they would also inform Admiral Kohoku about what happened to his missing marines.

The Normandy arrived at the Citadel and Shepard left with Garrus and Bau since Shepard thought they would be the most useful here on the Citadel. Tali wasn't welcome since she was a Quarian, Wrex could start a fight and Ashley and Kaidan were Republic soldiers and did not have access to areas like Bau did. Shepard wanted to handle things here fast but she had a few messages from people on the Citadel that were asking for help and Shepard decided to try and help these people out.

But before they did any of these favours, Shepard needed to go to the Embassies and confront Nassana so she along with Garrus and Bau hired a shuttle to take them to the Embassies. While in the Embassies, Shepard found more keepers and then scanned them. The three of them soon found Nassana sitting at one of the tables and Shepard walked over to them "Are you Nassana Dantius?" she asked

"I am" the Asari answered "And you must be Commander Shepard. Tell me, do you have any news on my sister?"

Shepard glared at her "Dahlia's dead and I know she was blackmailing you. I found the records at the base, she wasn't kidnapped at all, she was the leader of these slavers!"

Nassana sighed "So the truth comes out" she stated "I hope you're not angry, surely you understand why I lied to you. If people found out that my sister is a criminal then I would be considered a security risk. They'd revoke my clearance or place me under administration leave until she was apprehended."

"You know I would have helped if you had told me the truth" Shepard hissed "I don't like being tricked; it makes me look like a fool."

"I'll transfer some funds into your account as payment" Nassana added "I'm sure you'll find them satisfactory. It's been a pleasure doing business with you."

With their business at the Embassies finished, Shepard, Garrus and Bau left to see the next favour. There were two that needed handling near the markets. One was for Shepard's old friend Dr Michel who had called saying that she needed help and the other was from a woman named Rita who said that she needed help to protect her sister.

...

As Shepard and her team walked past the market in order to take the elevator to get to the wards, Shepard saw two humans arguing with each other.

"I don't care what you think Michael!" the woman shouted "It's my decision!"

The man known as Michael sighed "I know you're hurting Rebekah, but don't let your grief hurt your baby too." The man then saw Commander Shepard nearby "Hey, you're Commander Shepard, do you think you can talk some sense into my sister in law."

"I don't need anyone to talk sense into me!" Rebekah snapped "I'm not undergoing the treatments."

Shepard looked confused "What's going on, why are you two arguing?"

Michael sighed "Rebekah's husband Jacob died of a rare Heart condition a few months ago and there's a chance that the baby may develop the same heart condition but routine Gene Therapy can eliminate that."

"The chances of my baby developing the condition are very small Michael" Rebekah snapped "And there are reports that this Therapy could harm the child!"

"It's less dangerous than the genetic enhancements that the Republic soldiers receive!" Michael shouted back.

"I know that you're worried about your child but you may want to undergo this Therapy" Shepard responded "You should be careful what you ready about reports as you get people who write nonsense because they don't think that it should be done."

Rebekah started to breathe heavily "I just..." she struggled to find the words "I don't want my baby to be harmed. I was worried after reading these reports that having this therapy could end up killing my child. This child is all I have left to remind me of Jacob."

"Things like that would only really happen if it's done by someone who is not qualified." Shepard responded "If you are worried about this, make sure that you research the doctor before you book the Therapy. If your child does end up developing this heart condition, he will have a hard life, do you want that for your child."

Rebekah began to sniffle as a few tears started to form "No" she responded and looked at Michael "I'm sorry Michael for shouting, I'll undergo the therapy, just make sure we find a qualified professional."

"We will Rebekah" Michael replied "I was just worried for my brother's child." He looked at Shepard "Thank you for the help Commander, I'm going to prepare my sister in law's Therapy when I find a professional." The two of them walked away while Shepard and her group went back to their mission to find Dr Michel and this woman called Rita.

...

Shepard, Bau and Garrus soon arrived at the Wards and at Dr Michel's clinic. They had been here before except for Bau when they had gone to find evidence against Saren. When they entered, they saw Dr Michel was talking with someone over a screen though they couldn't see who it was.

"I need those supplies for my clinic, I can't..." Dr Michel hissed at the screen.

The person on the other side growled back in a computer voice which was a way of avoiding voice recognition "You can and you will!" he growled "Or your story won't stay secret for long! Don't disappoint me Doctor."

Michel sighed and turned to see Shepard "Hey Shepard, I take it you got my message?"

"I did" Shepard stated "I see that someone is threatening you. Who was that?"

"It's someone from my past" Michel admitted "I was fired by my previous employer for giving out free medical supplies to clinics like this. They never filed any charges; they just wanted me gone without a fuss. But someone has found out and now they're blackmailing me. If the medical board finds out about my past then I could lose my licence and shut this clinic down."

"So what can I do to help?" Shepard asked

Michel looked at a bag of supplies "They want me to take these supplies to a merchant down at the markets. They expect delivery today."

"Tell me who to deliver these supplies to and I'll make sure that they don't threaten you again." Shepard responded

"But won't they relieve my past?" Michel asked

"No one gets away with blackmailing someone who wants to help people!" Shepard hissed "These people are exploiting you and they need to understand that no one exploits people who try to help."

"Well I guess I don't need to know anymore" Michel stated "They told me to take the supplies to a merchant called Morlan down in the markets. Thank you for helping me Commander."

Shepard packed the bag of supplies into her own bag and she along with Garrus and Bau left the clinic. But before they went down to the markets, there was something else they had to look at first.

...

Before going over to the markets, Shepard, Garrus and Bau decided to check out the other request which had been sent by a woman called Rita who worked in a place called Flux. Flux was a newly opened nightclub which had already become very popular. There were two floors to the place. The first floor had the bar and dance floor where people would drink and dance. But on the upper level was the games floor where the popular gambling game Quasar was played. Shepard and her team entered but before going to find Rita, Shepard scanned another Keeper that was around the casino games.

Afterwards, Shepard went down to the bar which was where Rita said she would be. As Shepard sat down and asked for a drink from the Volus bartender, a young woman approached her "So you're Commander Shepard?" she asked

"I am" Shepard replied as she was given her drink "So what is it you called me for?"

Rita sighed "I'm worried about my sister Jenna. She left here to go work at Chora's Den. The problem is, she's working as an informant for C-Sec, you know, spying on the people there. I'm worried that she's going to get found out and killed, Chora's den attracts the worst people on the Citadel."

Shepard looked at her "Working undercover is a dangerous job."

"That's what I've been telling her" Rita stated "I tried talking to C-sec about it but they told me to stay out of it for Jenna's safety."

"Maybe I can talk to her" Shepard offered "I know just how dangerous Chora's den is."

"Thanks Commander" Rita replied "Just don't tell her that I sent you." She then sighed "I better get back to work before I get in trouble."

...

To get to Chora's den, they would have to go through the markets first so Shepard decided to handle Michel's problem with the blackmailer as they went through the markets. Along the way, Shepard ran into Conrad Verner who asked for a picture which Shepard granted. Then she along with her team entered the market where there were several stalls selling goods to people. Shepard looked for the one that was owned by Morlan and saw the stand since it was Morlan's Famous Shop. Shepard walked over and the Salarian merchant looked at her.

"Hello" he greeted "Welcome to Morlan's famous shop. Do you want any of my good supplies?"

Shepard leaned on the stall and quickly looked around "You were expecting a delivery of medical supplies."

Morlan looked confused "But I was told the Doctor would be bringing them?" he stated

"Things have changed!" Shepard smirked

"Changed!" Morlan gasped "But this isn't right!"

Then a large Krogan stepped into view "Shut up Morlan!" he snapped "I told Banes that you'd screw this up." He then glared at Shepard "Now what's going on here? Who are you?"

Shepard glared at the Krogan "I'm a friend of Dr Michel and I don't take kindly to people who threaten those who try to help people."

The Krogan grumbled "You better hand me those supplies or I'll start telling people about the Doctor's little secret."

Before anyone could react, Shepard pulled out her pistol "That secret stays buried with you or I'll bury you!"

To her surprise, the Krogan started waving his hands around. Most Krogan would have pulled out a shotgun and fired at her but this one didn't "Hey hold on, I'm just the middleman here. This is way more that I bargained for." He then turned around "Tell the Doctor that I won't tell anyone about her secret. Now I'll have to find another way to get those supplies without getting myself killed." The Krogan walked away and Morlan who had ducked behind his desk stood up.

"Thank you human for getting him to go away" he stated "He was always a bit of a bully."

Shepard looked at him "That Krogan was working for someone called Banes. What do you know of him?"

Morlan looked at Shepard "I've never met him. I've only worked with the one who spoke with the doctor. Maybe she'll know."

"We can ask Dr Michel later" Bau stated "But right now, we should head on to Chora's den to see Jenna."

...

Shepard, Garrus and Bau soon made it into Chora's den. Despite the fight that they had here while looking for Fist, the bar was now busy again. They found Jenna by the bar but she wasn't in a talking mood but then as they left, a Turian bumped into Shepard. As Shepard looked at the Turian, he leaned over to him "If you have questions about Jena, meet me at C-Sec Academy." Shepard looked at him before nodding and then the Turian started to act like Shepard had been responsible "Push off, I never did anything to you! Damn newcomers, they think they know the place."

Shepard then left and looked at Garrus and Bau. Garrus spoke first "I know that Turian, that's detective Chellick, he's one of the C-Sec Officers I worked with back in my days at C-Sec. I guess he must be Jena's superior here. I guess we better go and see him."

...

C-Sec Academy was located on the lower levels of the Wards. To get there, Shepard and her team had to go back through the markets and down a set of stairs before taking another lift down. This was the same place where they had met Wrex during their hunt for the evidence. Bau also mentioned that the Spectre offices were located here as well including the supply of weapons. Bau quickly went to check them out while Shepard found and scanned a few more Keepers which meant that they had scanned all of the Keepers. After Bau finished getting his supplies, they went over to C-Sec offices where Chellick had said to meet him. They found Chellick in one of the offices as the desk had his name on. He was no longer dressed like a man going for a drink and now he was dressed in his C-Sec Uniform.

"Commander Shepard" he greeted "I've heard quite a bit about you and your hunt for Saren. No offence but what were you thinking, you could have blown Jenna's cover."

"Jena's sister Rita is worried about her and wants her to get out of there." Shepard answered

"I gathered that" Chellick stated "I understand Rita's concerns but Jenna volunteered for this. It might seem cold letting her take all of the risk but we've been keeping a close eye on her."

"Do you really need to risk her like that?" Shepard asked "To get the information you want."

"This job isn't easy and it's usually unpleasant" Chellick answered and looked at Garrus "You know just how bad some criminals are Garrus?"

"And I hate seeing them go unpunished" Garrus answered

"I do as well" Chellick answered "But in order to get them convicted we need to get evidence and we need to make sure that civilians are not at risk while apprehending them" Shepard noticed Chellick eyeing Garrus when he said that. Then Chellick looked at Shepard again "Since you're so concerned about Jena, maybe you can help me out. If you help me then I can get Jena posted somewhere safer."

"I'll help you out" Shepard answered "But I'm going to need some details."

"I've been trying to track down an illegal arms producer here on the Citadel." Chellick replied "He's been producing weapons using banned technology and arming some of the criminal gangs. I just need some of their product to use as evidence. Thanks to Jena, I know that there is a seller here on the Citadel. I need you to meet our man called Jax, pick up the mods and bring them back here. That should give me everything I need."

Shepard agreed "Where can I find this Jax?" she asked

"He should be down near the lower levels of the markets" Chellick answered "I'll send word through that you're the buyer. Good luck Commander."

...

Shepard, Garrus and Bau soon made it to the markets where they had confronted the Blackmailer while helping Dr Michel. They found the person that Chellick had sent them to speak with, the Krogan known as Jax and he had two Turian bodyguards with him.

As Shepard approached, Jax pointed at them "Hold, that's close enough army" he hissed "Have you got my payment?"

Shepard nodded "Do you have the mods?" she asked

Jax looked at one of his bodyguards "Show her the mods" he ordered

One of the Turian bodyguards opened a crate that held in the weapon upgrades that Chellick had asked for. There were five of them in the crate.

"That looks right" Garrus stated

"Dam straight it is!" Jax shouted "These mods are the best in the market. Now hand over my credits!"

Shepard nodded "Here you go" she stated and handed over the bag of credits which Chellick had given her in order to pay for these mods.

Jax took the credits had ordered his bodyguard to hand over the mods "Here are your mods. It's been good doing business with you. Come on boys, we're done here." Jax then left with his bodyguards and Shepard now knew that she needed to take the mods back to Chellick.

...

Shepard stopped off at Dr Michel's clinic before she went back to C-Sec Academy in order to tell Dr Michel that she had dealt with her blackmailer.

Michel was waiting for her "Commander Shepard" she greeted as Shepard entered "How did things go?"

"The blackmailer won't be bothering you anymore" Shepard stated

"Thank you Commander" Michel replied "Sadly I don't have anything to pay you but I can offer you a discount on my supplies, you may need them for your non-Republic crew members."

"Thanks Dr Michel" Shepard stated "But there is one more thing, the Thug said that he worked for someone named Banes, does that name sound familiar."

"Banes?" Michel questioned "I wonder if he meant Armistan Banes. We worked together a long time ago. The last time I heard from him, he was helping the Republic Military with some research out in the Traverse."

Shepard thought "Colonel Yularen might know more" she stated "I'll ask him when we get back to Arcturus. I should go; I have one more thing to deal with before I have to go back to the Normandy."

"Anyway, thanks again for your help Commander Shepard." Michel stated "You will always be welcome at my clinic."

...

Soon, Shepard and her team were back at C-Sec offices in order to deliver the mods to Chellick. They arrived and found Chellick waiting in his office "Commander" he greeted "I hear you have something for me?"

Shepard nodded and place the mods that she had received from Jax on Chellick's desk "Here's your shipment Chellick" she stated

Chellick smiled "Excellent." He stated "This is everything I need. Well maybe a bit more than what I need but this should help me track down where these mods are made. Thank you Commander, here take this, I won't need it anymore." He handed Shepard a specially made blade made for a gun "I know that your people use different weapons but this blade will help you in case your enemies get too close to you. Consider it payment for your work and also, if there is ever a time when you need my help, don't be hesitant to ask. As for Jenna, I'll make sure that we get her out of Chora's den immediately. Now I need to get these mods into evidence, thanks again Shepard."

Now that there business here at the Citadel was finished, Shepard looked at Bau and Garrus when they left Chellick's office "Now that we're done here, I think it's time we head back to the Normandy in order to get back to Arcturus where we can see if Colonel Yularen has uncovered anything else about where Saren is."

...

Soon enough, Shepard, Garrus and Bau had returned to the Normandy and Shepard entered the bridge where Joker and Luke were waiting for him. Joker turned around in his seat and looked at her "So Commander, have you finished your errands on the Citadel."

"For now Joker" Shepard answered "Now get us back to Arcturus, I have to get the next part of our mission to hunt down Saren from Colonel Yularen."

"Aye Commander" Joker stated and within minutes, the Normandy was leaving the Citadel and then after Luke put the coordinates into the Navi-computer, they were on their way back to the Citadel.

**Chapter end:**

**Notes: This chapter was meant to have more in it as I was going to include the Arcturus part but then I decided to split the chapter in two. I have also rewritten chapter 7 as I decided for Shepard to get the main missions at different times so that I can do some of the side missions so Shepard doesn't know about Noveria and Feros right now.**


	11. Back to Arcturus:

**Back to Arcturus:**

The Normandy was on its way back to Arcturus from the Citadel. They had two things to do when they got there. They were to get further orders from Colonel Yularen about what to do next and they would also inform Admiral Kohoku about what happened to his missing Marines. They had a bit of time to pass so Shepard decided she would go down to the Engineering deck to speak with Engineer Adams and the Quarian Tali.

When she got down to the deck, she found both the people she was looking for near the power core of the ship. Most Citadel Ships uses Element Zero for fuel but as a Republic ship, the Normandy used a different type of fuel such as Rhydonium which was dangerous when exposed to skin, they would also use Helium-3 as a fuel for normal space travelling. When travelling in hyperspace, star ships used a different fuel such as Tibanna or Coaxium. The need for this fuel is why the Republic built special cities over gas giants which were used for mining these gases. The fuel was also valuable on the black market so gangs would often raid the shipments for this fuel. After the contact between the Republic and the Citadel, the Citadel species tried to build their own hyperdrives but without access to Tibanna or Coaxium, they were unable to build their own hyperdrives as Element Zero wasn't powerful enough to power hyperdrives for star ships so the Citadel was still needing the Mass Relays as none of the Republic Species were willing to assist the Citadel after the Shanxi War.

Shepard walked over to Adams who turned around to greet her "Hey Commander" he greeted "You know that Quarian Tali? She's been spending all her time down here asking me about our engines."

"If she's bothering you with your duties then I'll tell her to leave you alone." Shepard stated

Adams was confused but then shook his head "Oh no, she's not bothering me." He replied "She's amazing; I wish half my guys were as smart as she is. Soon she'll know more about our engines than I do. She's got a real knack for technology. I can see why you wanted her along."

"She's a real asset for the team" Shepard stated "And her knowledge on the Geth might be useful for us."

"You've got an eye for talent Commander" Adams replied "But I guess that's not why you came down here."

Shepard did have a question for Adams and it was to do with the Normandy's stealth drives "Fill me in on this ship's stealth systems. How does it work?"

Adams smiled "You can't hide a ship out in space even with the Republic's cloaking technology as they emit too much heat and radiation so radar can pick them up. Unless you find a way to capture those emissions. The Normandy's stealth systems trap the radiation in special storage tanks built into the ship itself which means there are no emissions to give away our position. Eventually those tanks have to be emptied otherwise they'll overheat and start cooking us in our hull. They could still see us if they look out of a window but you would have to be pretty close for that. Most ships relay on scanners to find us but even a decloaking scan wouldn't pick up us up unless we accelerate to hyper speed. Those emissions have a too high frequency to be trapped in the tanks but we're just a scout craft so we won't be fighting in proper battles like our Star Destroyers. Our mission would be to get in and then get out of an area which is why the Stealth Systems are amazing."

"Carry on Adams" Shepard replied

"Aye Aye Commander" Adams stated and then he went back to work.

Shepard then went over to Tali who was staring at the ship's drive core "Your ship is amazing Shepard" Tali stated to her "I've never seen a drive core like this before. I'm surprised you can fit it onto a ship this small. Of course, I've never seen that many Republic ships before. Now I'm understood why the Republic has been so successful, your ships are so advanced."

"The Normandy is a prototype ship with cutting edge technology" Shepard responded "Not every ship in the Republic is like this."

"You know just a few months ago I was a makeshift fuel line into a convert tug on the flotilla and now I'm sitting on board one of the most advanced ships in the galaxy. Thank you again for letting me travel on this ship, it is a dream come true."

"I didn't know you found ship technology so interesting." Shepard stated

"That's common when you're a Quarian." Tali claimed "We live on ships all our lives. The migrant Fleet is the key to the survival of our people. Ships are our most valuable resource. Do you want to know something, one time the Flotilla passed through the edges of the Terminus Systems shortly after the Verge war and we actually found the remains of one of those massive Star Destroyers that the Republic has. The flotilla talked about salvaging the ship for parts but some decided to get the ship operating again. The Flotilla was against it as the ship was too big and needed too many people to crew but after a battle with a group of pirates where the ship singlehandedly fought back the pirates, the Flotilla decided to name the ship as the Flotilla's flagship. That one ship is almost like a city to us Quarians so many civilians now live on the ship like it's our mobile space city, it's basically our version of the Citadel."

"There is one thing I wanted to ask you about Tali?" Shepard stated "When we first met you said that you were on something called a pilgrimage, what is that?"

"The Quarians have few raw resources so sometimes we have to go out and get them." Tali responded "When my people reach maturity, we leave the ships where we were born and seek acceptance with a new crew. It's necessary to maintain genetic diversity among the fleet. Some would seek to be on our warships while others would be more like engineers. But no ship wants to accept someone who will be a burden to them so we prove our worth by embarking on our pilgrimage. We set out alone, leaving the flotilla and our families behind and we only return when we find something of value to bring back to the fleet such as a piece of technology. This is presented to the captain of the ship we want to join and if the gift is accepted, then we are welcomed as part of that ship's crew."

"But what happens if that gift is rejected?" Shepard asked

Tali shook her head "That doesn't happen often. I've never really heard of cases like that happening. Most captains are eager to increase the size of their crew because it increases their standing in society. Even when the gift is not valuable, the captain accepts out of a sense of tradition. However there is a stigma to presenting a sub-standard gift, it's not the best way to make a first impression on a new community. Most pilgrims don't return until they find something valuable."

"But isn't it harsh to send you out alone?" Shepard asked "The galaxy is a dangerous place and Quarians aren't welcome in most places."

"That is true and I have heard stories about Slavers trying to capture Quarians but we aren't that valuable to them because of our weakened immune systems. But it's not like they cast us out, we are given lessons in how to survive outside the flotilla and we are given gifts to help us survive. We also have implants to protect us from illness and disease as we have very weak immune systems. What you would call a common cold would be fatal to us. By the time we leave the flotilla, we are well-equipped for the pilgrimage. This is a rite of passage for all Quarians and if it were dangerous then our numbers would suffer. Every pilgrimage ends with a triumphant return and the ritual presentation of the gift to one of the fleet's captains."

Shepard was about to leave but then she heard Joker call her over her comm. "Hey Commander, you better get up here, we're approaching Arcturus Station."

"I'm on my way Joker" Shepard responded as she made her way to the bridge."

...

Shepard soon found herself on the Bridge where Bau was waiting for her. Looking out of the window, Shepard saw that they had left hyperspace and were near Arcturus Station.

Luke looked at her while Joker piloted the ship "Commander, we're about to dock but we've just had word from Republic Command that Rear Admiral Mikhailovich is waiting for us at the docks."

"Great" Shepard sighed

"What's going on?" Bau asked "Who is this Rear Admiral Mikhailovich?"

"Mikhailovich is the commander of the 63rd scout flotilla" Shepard answered "Part of the 5th fleet. It was where the Normandy was to be assigned after our mission on Eden Prime but now we technically part of the Republic Secret Service. He may not like losing a prized ship like this."

"Will he be a problem?" Bau asked

Shepard shook her head "Mikhailovich is a loyal Republic Admiral. He will most likely be performing an inspection to see if the ship is up to Republic standards. He may not be use to the design of the Normandy and he may not like that we have none Republic crew members though he'll tolerate you Bau since you're here on Citadel orders."

"I guess we'll see what he wants when we land" Joker stated "I'm docking now."

...

The Normandy soon docked at Arcturus Station and Shepard soon made her way off along with Bau, Kaidan and Ashley since they may be needed here.

They knew about Mikhailovich and as soon as they saw him, Ashley and Kaidan saluted in respect.

Rear Admiral Mikhailovich clearly was a no-nonsense type of man which you could tell by the stern look on his face. He looked younger as he looked to be in his mid thirties which was why he had the rank of Rear Admiral. He also wore a smart Republic officer's uniform with his rank plaque over his left side of his chest "At ease" he called to them "I'm Rear Admiral Mikhailovich of the 63rd Scout Flotilla. I gave word to your ship that I would be here."

Shepard saluted as well "Commander Shepard, RSV Normandy. We did have word that you would be here."

Mikhailovich looked at Bau "I know about your mission and you bringing a Spectre with you. We may be an independent power but both our governments have to work together to bring peace. Admiral Hackett briefed me on your mission to hunt down this Saren. I can't think of anyone better to lead this mission than you Commander Shepard. But I am disappointed about having to lose this ship of yours. I heard that the Normandy's new stealth systems would have been perfect for top scouting missions into dangerous territory. I'm here to make a routine inspection; the Normandy is still a Republic Vessel and every ship needs to be inspected to make sure that its taxpayer's money well spent."

"I'll be glad to let you look around" Shepard stated to him.

"I bet" Mikhailovich stated "This won't take long Commander."

...

The inspection took about an hour and Shepard waited until Mikhailovich came back. From the look on his face, he wasn't that happy "Commander, I'm not really happy" he stated

"I'm sorry to hear you say that" Shepard responded.

"Seeing a CIC at the rear end is normal on a larger ship that would be used in battle but the Normandy is a scouting vessel." Mikhailovich stated "What if the captain needs to discuss with the operatives ahead of the bow?"

"It's a modified Turian style" Shepard responded "They prefer commanders who look over their workers rather than be in the middle of them." Shepard had learnt this while training "We want to see how effectively we can command with that set up."

Mikhailovich pondered for a moment "That's a reasonable goal but I believe it would have been best to study that in a lab than on a front line warship. Another problem I have is with the drive core on that ship. I feel like the drive core is too powerful for a ship this size, the amount of money it cost to build that core could have been used to build a lot more starfighters for our carriers or even another destroyer. What good is it for this ship to hide for a few hours?"

Shepard responded to that question "The Normandy can hide in enemy space and spy on enemy fleets or planetary defences which can aid in an upcoming battle and even drop infiltration teams on enemy planets and the enemy won't even know about it. This ship is just as effective as the Salarian STG teams."

"I admit that is a good need" Mikhailovich admitted "But that is not the goal of a proper warship so I don't see the need for the amount of weaponry on this ship. And there is one last problem I have and it's to do with your crew. I understand bring the Salarian with us since he was assigned to this joint mission but I am concerned about the others. The Krogan mercenary, the Asari student and that Quarian. The Republic and the Citadel are still at odds with each other and it's not wise to let them get their hands on top Republic technology."

Shepard knew that this would come up but she had prepared her answer "Between Saren and the Geth, the Republic has enough enemies already. Even if we don't like each other we need to build bridges with the other races to find allies if we end up needing them."

"That's if we need them" Mikhailovich stated "The Republic has many allies in the many races we have. Is there anything else you want to say to me Commander?"

Shepard looked at the Rear Admiral "Even if you disagree Rear Admiral, the Normandy is a fine piece of engineering with prototype technology. At some point that technology may be important if we end up in a situation of war and the mix crew shows that we can work together."

"Your job is to look good" Mikhailovich stated "The Republic army has to win wars. I'm not fully convinced that the Normandy isn't a waste of taxpayers' money but I do believe that you believe otherwise and are using her to her best needs. I am also convinced that the Normandy can operate on top missions like this one with the Geth. I'll be submitting my report to the Joint Military Council but it will not be as negative as I planned." He then saluted "Good luck Commander Shepard, make us all proud." He then left to go and write his report leaving Shepard and her team alone.

"Charming man" Bau stated

"Mikhailovich is only doing his job" Kaidan stated "He's not here to be our friend."

"We should go over to the Republic military command" Shepard stated "Hopefully we can find Colonel Yularen and hope that he has more news for us."

...

Shepard and her team soon made it at the Republic Military Headquarters where they hoped to find Colonel Yularen and Rear Admiral Kohoku. But before they entered the building, they saw a man nearby who was calling for Shepard so Shepard decided to see what was wrong.

"Commander Shepard" the man greeted "My name is Samesh Bhatia, I'm sorry for the intrusion but I don't know who else to talk to."

"It's no trouble but I do have important business to deal with" Shepard replied "What's wrong?"

Bhatia sighed "It's my wife; she was stationed on Eden Prime. She was part of the 212."

Ashley then knew who Bhatia was talking about "Wait, your wife was Serviceman Nirali Bhatia? I'm Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, I was serving with her."

"Chief Williams?" Sameth gasped "It's a pleasure, Nirali spoke highly of you."

"I'm sorry for your loss" Ashley stated "What can we do for you."

"I've requested that my wife's body be returned to me for cremation" Samesh stated "But for some reason, the military has refused my request."

"The Republic is suppose to return all the bodies of the dead to their families for cremation" Shepard stated "Did they say why?"

"I don't know" Sameth sighed "They only stated that it was impossible to return her body at the moment. The man in charge is known as Clerk Bosker and he was currently meeting with several officials in the Headquarters. I just want to give my wife a proper funeral and the respect she deserves."

"I do what I can to have your wife's body returned to you." Shepard stated "She deserves to be returned to her family."

"Thank you Commander" Sameth stated "I'll see you later."

...

Shepard, Kaidan, Ashley and Bau soon entered the Republic Military Headquarters after handing their code cylinders to the Guard and Shepard saw many of the workers busy working on their computers as they transferred information around Arcturus Station to where the data needed to go. Nearby Shepard saw who she was looking for, it was Clerk Bosker who had just shook the hand of someone and Shepard quickly made her way over.

Clerk Bosker saw Shepard and his eyes widened as he knew who she was. Apparently, Shepard was well known across the Republic "My goodness, you're Commander Shepard. Your activities made for quite the briefing in the Diplomatic Corps. Is there something I can do to assist you?"

Shepard nodded "Yes, there is something you can do. A man named Sameth Bhatia asked me to speak with you. He wants to have his wife's body returned to him for cremation."

Bosker sighed "Mr Bhatia." He said softly "He's a good man and I understand what he wants to do. I wish I could help him. It's wasn't my idea to not allow his wife's body to be returned but there is a reason why. Serviceman Nirali Bhatia died on Eden Prime as Mr Bhatia told you; however the wounds she received are different from the type of weapons that we have seen which is why her body is being held."

"So her body is being tested to learn more about Geth Weaponry?" Shepard questioned

"Yes" Bosker replied "They said that these tests may help us create better defences against the Geth. That means she could save more lives even in death."

"I understand what it is you're trying to do but this isn't right." Shepard stated

"Commander, you know how far we must go to protect the Republic from future attacks!" Bosker protested

"But holding the remains of people who died won't go down well with others" Shepard replied "Some of the other Republic Species call this desecration and it could lead to a split in the Republic which would make things worse. Do you want this to happen?"

Bosker gasped as he had never thought about that "No, I want to help the Republic but I can't watch the Republic break up over something like this." He then sighed "Tell Mr Bhatia that I'll release the body to him for a funeral. Maybe the samples we've already collected could at least give us some idea on how to improve defence."

"Thank you Clerk Bosker" Shepard stated "Now I must go and see Colonel Yularen and Admiral Kohoku."

...

Shepard soon found Rear Admiral Kohoku's office and when she entered, she found Kohoku sitting behind his desk reading some documents. He looked up when he heard his door opened and smiled when he saw Shepard "Commander Shepard" he greeted "Do you have any word on my missing men?"

Shepard sighed "I'm not sure how to tell you this Admiral." She stated "But I'm afraid that your men are dead, they were killed by a Thresher Maw."

"A Thresher Maw?" Kohoku gasped "That's not... my men wouldn't just stumble on a Thresher Maw nest. Not the entire unit."

"Someone lured your men with a Republic Distress Beacon" Bau stated "It was placed perfectly so they'd land right next to the nest. This wasn't an Accident; someone lured them there to kill them."

"Damn it!" Kohoku growled "I had a bad feeling about this ever since my team went missing. A Republic Beacon used as bait and no one seems to know anything about it." He then sighed "Commander, I appreciate what you did; now I need to do my part, the families of my team need to know what happens. I'll also do some investigation to see who's behind this. It could be the Batarians or some rebel faction. I'll let you know if I find anything out Commander."

"I'll be happy to help in any way I can Admiral." Shepard replied "By the way, do you know where Colonel Yularen is; I need to ask him if he's found anything else on the whereabouts of Saren?"

"Colonel Yularen is currently in his office in the Republic Secret Service building." Kohoku answered "In fact he wanted to tell you something but it had nothing to do with Saren. He said something about an entire colony being in danger."

"I'll be right over there then." Shepard stated and she left with her team to find Colonel Yularen.

...

Shepard soon found Colonel Yularen in his office but she was surprised at who else was in the office. The person had yellowish skin and his face was covered in short fine hairs that grew longer and thicker around the mouth, he also had a flat nose but the most distinguishing feature of his man were his four eyes which allowed Shepard to see that this man was a Batarian.

The Batarians were a race that had a terrible reputation for being pirates and Slavers. Ever since the Republic became known to the Galaxy, the Batarians tried to seize control of the area known as the Skyllian verge from them claiming it was theirs to control. Several Batarian funded raids provoked a fast and angry response from the Republic and it was used as a reason by the Senate to not join the Citadel. The Batarians were classed as a Citadel member despite not obeying their rules. The first major clash between the Republic and the Batarians was at Mindoir where Batarian Slavers attacked the colonel which took years to rebuild. The response nearly started a war and only the when the Citadel put huge pressure on the Batarians was war prevented but it still made the Republic invest heavily in defence to fight of future attacks.

The Verge War began after the attack on Elysium and the Republic pretty much smashed the Batarian navy which was weaker that the Batarians claimed. When the war ended, the Batarians entered a civil war which resulted in many major colonies breaking away from the Hegemony's control and forming the Batarian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth had an ambassador on Arcturus station so this Batarian was probably the Batarian Ambassador.

Colonel Yularen saw Shepard entered and greeted her "Commander Shepard" he stated "I'm glad you're here, I did have more to tell you about your hunt for Saren but we have a situation that needs your attention."

"Admiral Kohoku said something about a major colonel being in danger." Shepard stated

"It is." Yularen stated "I'll let my Batarian friend here explain."

The Batarian got up from his chair "So you're Commander Shepard. Every Batarian had heard of you on what you did on Elysium. I say well done as you saved many lives that day. Not every Batarian agrees with what the Hegemony did that day which is why many of us broke away. My name is Galem Cognerr, the Ambassador from the Batarian Commonwealth."

"So what is this about a colony being in danger?" Ashley demanded

"After the Batarian civil war ended, the new government decided to send in special agents to spy on the Hegemony as there were fears that they were building up their strength in order to force us to be part of their nation again." Galem stated "Some of these Agents also spy on Slavers in order to help us give your colonies a warning before the attack. One of my top agents has stated that your colonel known as Terra Nova is in extreme danger and I don't mean from Slavers."

"What do you mean?" Kaidan demanded.

"A group of Slavers recently took control of an Asteroid that Terra Nova was bringing towards Terra Nova for mining." Galem stated "But apparently these Slavers decided to go even further, they've activated the Fusion torches and now the Asteroid is on a course for hitting Terra Nova."

"What!" Shepard shouted "That's madness!"

"I know it is" Galem stated "Even for the Hegemony, this is extreme, the Citadel forbids actions like this and the consequences of this going through would be severe for both the Commonwealth and the Hegemony. If Terra Nova is destroyed by this, no one will trust the Batarians again. The Asteroid is now too close for it to be destroyed; it will just split into several different pieces and cause even more damage."

Yularen then spoke up "You're going to have to lead a small team to retake the Asteroid and shut off the torches. And capture the leader if you can, we cannot let this action go unpunished."

"I will" Shepard stated "I'll set off right away and then I'll carry on my hunt for Saren."

"Good" Yularen stated "Oh and speaking of Saren, my agents have reported that the woman who was in the Recording of Saren, Matriarch Benezia has been spotted on Noveria."

"Noveria?" Bau questioned "This will be tricky, I'll have to go along with you."

"Good luck Shepard" Yularen stated "And make sure you stop this Asteroid."

Galem then spoke up "And there is something else, our agent on this Asteroid will help you. My agent is unable to shut off the torches as she'll be exposed."

"And how will I know who your agent is?" Shepard asked

"It will be easy since my agent is a woman" Galem stated "The Hegemony doesn't allow Woman to be part of the military, so if you hear a female Batarian then you'll know that she's the Batarian you're looking for."

...

Shepard and her team didn't waste any time. Shepard knew that time was critical so she and her team went straight back to the Normandy. She was able to meet with Bhatia on the way back but quickly informed him of the problem she was facing and had no time to talk. Bhatia thanked her for helping him and wished Shepard luck.

As soon as they made it back to the Normandy, Shepard went towards the Bridge "Joker, Luke, our next mission is important that we must head off right away." She said to them.

"Aye Commander" Joker replied but he noticed that Shepard was worried "Is everything alright Commander?"

Shepard sighed "We need to get to Terra Nova right away. Take us there the fasted route you can. If we're too late then a major colony and 4 million people will be gone."

"That's sound serious!" Luke gasped "We're heading there right away." The Normandy quickly left the docking bay and left Arcturus Station before Luke put the coordinates into the navi-computer and the Normandy blasted into lightspeed towards Terra Nova.

**Chapter End:  
Notes: Well here is the next chapter and Shepard has her new orders. The next chapter will introduce a new companion for Shepard and it will be a female Batarian. In the Mass Effect Universe, we only ever see male Batarians but there is a female Batarian in one of the books. I decided to bring in a female Batarian instead of a male as I had a few ideas on a personal side quest involving this new character and some Batarian history. I have now started writing the next chapter of Rise of the Divines and I will try and get it finished sometime in September.**


	12. X-57

**X-57:**

The Normandy had quickly entered Lightspeed after leaving Arcturus Station. Shepard knew what was at stake and they had a limited time for this mission so she had ordered Joker and Luke to take the fastest route to Terra Nova so they would have enough time to stop the Asteroid. She had also informed the crew of what was going on and they all quickly got to work fast. They knew that this mission was important and that they had to do their best to make sure that the Normandy would get to Terra Nova in time before millions of people were killed.

The trip would take a few hours which gave Shepard a bit of time to talk with one of her crewmembers. This was one crewmember that many were unsure of, the Krogan Mercenary Wrex. As a Krogan, he already had a reputation of being brutal and ruthless, many Krogan were known for being involved in criminal gangs but were still known to be good fighters. Shepard needed to know a bit more about Wrex as some of the crew were worried about having him on board.

Shepard found Wrex down in the Cargo horde. Wrex had made an area for himself over in the corner of the Cargo hold where he kept his personal weapons which he always kept with him at all times. When Shepard entered the Cargo hold, she found Wrex in the middle of a growling contest with Dik, the Wookie assistant of the Normandy's supply officer Zeplatuz. Both were making loud growls at each other until Wrex chuckled "Now your species is one that had the Warrior Spirit." Dik have a pleased growl but Wrex didn't understand what he was saying and then Zeplatuz called Dik over to help him load the supplies onto the Mako which Shepard would need.

Wrex looked over and saw Shepard walking over to him "Shepard" he greeted "So I hear that we're going to stop an Asteroid drop. During the Krogan rebellions, my people did that trick a few times which destroyed planets. The council has since forbidden acts like that and I agree with it, things like that just destroy planets which people need. There's little point in destroying a planet."

"So you agree with this mission?" Shepard asked

"Stopping Saren is a priority" Wrex stated "But this is just as important as the consequences of this action would affect you Republic badly and could even start a war. While that's good for mercenaries like us, it would just cause problems that we don't need. Besides, Saren could be involved in this."

"I not too sure on that" Shepard responded "This is more the work of Batarian Extremists."

"Yeah, but Saren could be using them to distract the Republic." Wrex suggested "He would do something like this; he's rotten to the core. I knew it as soon as a met him."

Shepard caught on that, Wrex had met Saren before this mission "Wait, you've met Saren before, why didn't you tell us that?"

"If I knew that it was important, I would have" Wrex stated "And I actually only recently found out that I've met this guy."

"I still would like to hear about it." Shepard stated

"This was a few years ago" Wrex started his story with Saren "A bunch of Mercs were bragging about a job on the edges of the Terminus Systems. They said that it paid well and the boss was never around to ride them. In fact, he only ever showed his face once and that's how I met him. We'd been raiding ships in the area for months and we caught this massive freighter, it was our biggest haul yet."

"Wait, why would Saren be raiding ships, that goes against being a Spectre?" Shepard stated

"I don't know why" Wrex stated "I didn't even know he was a Spectre. I didn't even know what he wanted with the ship. He was just moving around watching. A couple of the Mercs called him by name but he never responded. Never spoke to anyone. I had a really bad feeling about him so I got the hell out. I didn't even wait to get paid."

"What kind of ship was it and what was the cargo?" Shepard asked

"It was a Volus trading vessel. Big ship with lots of guards but they were no match for us" Wrex stated "As for the cargo, I didn't see much, all I saw was food and medical supplies. There were a few guns but nothing big. If there was anything valuable, I didn't see anything. That's why I didn't mention it sooner."

"And this is the only time you saw Saren?" Shepard questioned

"Yeah" Wrex replied "I didn't even know who he was and I wouldn't if I hadn't joined with you. And my instincts were right about him because every other Merc that was on that ship ended up dead within the week. Every one of them and that's why I know that Saren is rotten to the core and he has to be dealt with."

"I see" Shepard stated "Well I could already see that Saren was dangerous but it's clear he will betray his own allies as well. That makes him even worse."

"This is why he has to be dealt with." Wrex stated

"We'll find him but we have to deal with this Asteroid first." Shepard stated

Then Joker called over the Radio "Shepard, we're approaching Terra Nova, get your crew into the Mako and be prepared for the launch."

"Copy Joker" Shepard replied over her comm. "Tell Bau, Ashley and Liara to meet me at the Mako. Verbro and his team will be there along with me and Wrex."

…

The Normandy came out of lightspeed in the Asgard System. This was the second system in the Exodus cluster which was the same cluster where Eden Prime was located. There were four planets in the Asgard system and three of them were named after Norse Gods. The planet called Borr was a massive Hydrogen-Helium gas giant that had over 90 moons and its mass was 6 times of Sol's largest planet of Jupiter. Borr was the only gas giant in the Asgard system and while mining is difficult due to Borr's deep gravity well, it is an important planet for creating fuel for the colony.

The furthest planet is the system was the planet Loki named after the Norse God of mischief. This small terrestrial planet had little to recommend settlement as one hemisphere is covered in a thick ice cap and the other by craggy basaltic highlands. Scans of the planet have revealed many tunnels beneath the Ice cap which have been concluded to have been formed by natural means. Loki's thin atmosphere was made up of Krypton and Xenon which made the planet unsuitable for colonization.

The planet of Tyr was like Earth but had an atmosphere made of nitrogen and ethane and while Terraforming was an option, the nearby planet of Terra Nova made Tyr more of a supporting role. However, there was still a colony of Tyr as many corporations have made vast mining networks which make Tyr a good colony with a population of about 47,000.

But the main planet in the system was the closest planet to the Sun, Terra Nova. Terra Nova was one of the first planets to have been created by the Republic and has the highest population of any Republic colony of about 10 million. Although Terra Nova is banded by a harsh desert, the land close to the Poles are temperate and after the discovery of platinum, there was a rush to the colony which made the colony grow even bigger by about 30% in the last twelve years and it doesn't seem to be slowing down. As Terra Nova was the largest Republic colony, it was probably the reason why the Batarians had decided to attack the colony.

...

Shepard and her team waited in the Mako and they were able to hear what Joker was saying over the comm. "Shepard, the Normandy's sensors reveal 3 fusion torches are propelling Asteroid X-57. At its current rate of acceleration, X-57 will collide with Terra Nova in approximately four hours. Those torches must be deactivated for the Asteroid to stop moving."

Luke then called over "Commander, I'm getting a distress call from X-57; I'm patching it through to you."

Shepard activated the comm on her arm "Hello, I'm seeing your ship approaching on the scanners" female voice called "They haven't found me yet but I can't talk long, you need to shut down the fusion torches or millions of people will die" the comm then died and soon Joker was close enough to the Asteroid that the ramp was opened and Pekue drove the Mako down onto X-57's surface.

…

When the Mako came to a stop, Shepard had the team put on their breathing helmets as they wouldn't be able to breathe on the surface of this Asteroid or be protected from UV radiation. When the team was ready, Shepard ordered the back ramp of the Mako to be opened and Shepard along with Verbro and his two men, Westmoreland and Campbell left the Mako and brought out three 614-AVA Speeder bikes. These Bikes were small hovering bikes that were originally made by the Chiss. They were used for small scouting parties and were very fast. You had to be skilled to use them as if you went too fast then you would end up losing control of the bike and crashing. Verbro and his team had been in training to use these bikes.

"Verbro" Shepard stated "I need you and you team to scout around the area and help look for survivors. Our main objective is to stop the Fusion torches but I need you to scout the area and look for survivors. Also report any movement you see on these Batarians, I need to find out where their main base is as no ship has been seen leaving so they might still be here."

"Understood Commander" Verbro stated and then he and his team got on their speeder bikes and sped off while Shepard went back into the Mako.

"Shepard" Pekue stated "One of the Fusion torches is not too far from here. I'm heading there now."

"Do it" Shepard ordered and then the Mako began driving towards the first fusion torch.

…

Shepard and her team quickly arrived at the first Fusion torch. The controls for the torch were in a small building however the Batarians had managed to set up some defence turrets which started firing at the Mako. But Pekue was able to avoid the shots and Shepard quickly used the Mako's cannon to take out the cannons. Then Pekue stopped the Mako and Shepard and her team left the Mako and went inside the building.

The building looked like a small warehouse where there were supplies ready for mining. The controls for the Fusion Torch would be on the upper level but there were a few Batarians guarding the place. There was no time to hide as the Batarians brought some trained animals called Varren. These creatures were native to the Krogan homeworld but they recently had spread due to the Krogan and Batarians breeding them to use as War Beasts and when properly trained, they were great companions.

But these Varren were companions to the Batarians and two sniffed Shepard and her team before they could hide and they charged at them. But Wrex was ready and fired his shotgun which killed one of them and Liara used her biotics to throw the other one aside. Ashley fired up her machine gun along with Shepard while Bau used his Sniper rifle to take care of a few assault drones that the Batarians had brought along. When the Batarians were defeated, Shepard went up to the upper floor and found the controls for the Fusion torch. Thankfully the controls were still intact so she was able to switch the torch off.

Then the voice called her over her comm again "I'm reading that the torch is offline" she stated "Can you hear me?"

"I can hear you" Shepard responded "But who are you."

"My name is Kate Bowmen." The voice replied "I'm an engineer that was assigned to be part of the team that would bring this Asteroid to Terra Nova. A few days ago we were attacked by Batarian extremists and me and my brother have been hiding ever since. I have a feeling that they might know that the torch has been switched off."

"Why are the Batarians doing this?" Shepard questioned "They should know that an action like this would have extreme consequences."

"I don't know" Bowmen answered "But if this Asteroid isn't stopped then millions on Terra Nova will die. If I find out anything..." Kate stopped when she heard noises nearby "I have to go; they're nearby, good luck."

The radio then cut off leaving Shepard alone and she returned to her team. "Come on, we still have two more torches to shut down.

But just as they were about to leave the building, Shepard saw someone nearby "Hey?" she called

But this only startled the man who turned on him and fired his gun. But the shot was protected by Shepard's shields which made the man gasp in surprise "Oh god!" he gasped "I didn't mean to fire! You just startled me. Are you alright? I thought you were one of them"

"I'm okay, that shot wasn't enough to go through my shields" Shepard responded "I'm Commander Shepard, I'm with the Republic. I was sent here once I got word about what was going on."

"I'm Simon Atwell, the chief engineer on this rock" The man introduce himself "We don't have much time, you need to shut down the two remaining torches before we collide with Terra Nova. There are 10 million people down there including my family."

"I don't have time to do the maths in my head." Shepard stated "What will happen if I fail to stop this Asteroid."

"X-57 is 22 kilometres long which is double the size of the Asteroid that is said to have wiped out Earth's dinosaurs." Simon stated "It would be like millions of fusion bombs striking at once. This will be an extinction level event; the heat of the blast will ignite clothes at a thousand kilometres away. There will be global wildfires; air shock will flatten everything in sight. And then the dust created by the blast will block out Asgard for years. Terra Nova will die, not just the colony but the planet. Without the sight of Asgard all of the plants will die which will mean no food and then the animals will. The ecosystem won't recover for thousands of years, maybe even millions."

"Is there a chance it will land in the water?" Shepard asked

Simon shook his head "That will be just as bad." He stated "The impact will create massive tsunamis which will sweep inland at hundreds of miles an hour. Millions of tons of water will also be evaporated which would mean global cloud coverage and the plants will die again."

Bau looked at Simon "I still don't understand." He stated "The Batarians have been known to run small slaving gangs. But they don't destroy worlds, what does this gain them?"

"I've heard stories of Batarians attacking colonies and enslaving people." Simon stated "But after the Verge War and their own Civil War, it has become more difficult for the Batarian slavers. But this is just extreme even for them, the Citadel forbids Asteroid drops."

"And if they make this part of their policy then it would force the Citadel Council to act." Bau added

Wrex then had a question "What do you know about the Batarian numbers and their leader?" he asked

"The Batarians landed at the main facility but they've changed to codes." Simon stated "I don't know how big they are but they did send out groups to the Fusion torches so they will give you a fight. As for their leader, I heard a few Batarians mention a Balak, it seems like he's the one in charge. But some of these Batarians didn't think that this was a good idea but they were too scared of this Balak to do anything."

"We should go now" Ashley stated "We've only got a limited time before the Asteroid hits, is there anything else we should know?"

Simon nodded "The second torch station is surrounded by live blasting caps that were set up for mining once we reach Terra Nova. That tank of yours will set them off so you'll have to go in on foot and even then if you get too close they will go off. I can't disable them from here but there are manual controls at the entrance. There are also a few engineers that are missing, I know your mission is important but I hope they're alright."

"I have another team searching the area." Shepard stated "I can have them search the area for them."

"There's a transmission tower on top of the hill here." Simon stated "If you take control of it then it will give you an idea on where they were last located."

"We did have contact with one" Shepard added "A woman called Kate Bowman contacted me; the Batarians haven't found her yet."

"Kate's alive!" Simon gasped "She's one of my best engineers and she signed on with her brother Aaron, he's part of the security team, I hope they're okay."

"Before we go I need to ask?" Bau added "Why were you moving this Asteroid?"

"The idea was to drag it into Terra Nova's orbit and then mine it out" Simon answered "Then you would have a basic structure for an orbital station. Terra Nova has no natural satellites so it was a good idea for the population so we're has a source of natural light at night. It's also cheaper than blasting the parts of from Terra Nova; the minerals in this Asteroid almost cover the cost."

"We should get going now?" Shepard stated

"Good luck Commander." Simon stated as Shepard and her team left.

…

After they returned to the Mako, Shepard had Pekue drive to the top of the hill towards the transmission tower. The tower had been damaged but Shepard was able to repair it. Tali would have been useful but Shepard had left her on the Normandy but Shepard still knew a few tricks. Shepard was able to get the Tower up and running again but before she returned to the Mako, she decided to contact Verbro "Verbro listen, I ran into the Chief Engineer and he said that there are a few engineers that might have avoided capture by the Batarians."

Verbro called back over the radio "We've already found the body of someone called G Mendel. His body seems to have been badly beaten before being killed by a pistol shot to the back of the head. He must have surrendered but they murdered him."

Shepard sighed "Verbro, I've reactivated the transmission tower, it should allow you to find the remaining engineers but stay away from the middle Fusion torch, it's surrounded by blasting caps and those Speeder Bikes will set them off."

"Understood Shepard" Verbro replied "Now you better shut off those remaining torches before this Asteroid gets too close."

...

The Mako soon arrived at the second torch station and just like the first station, there were several Defence turrets had been hacked by the Batarians and were now firing at them but Shepard quickly took care of them before Pekue had to stop driving around.

"Shepard, you were right" she said "There are blasting caps around the station, this tank can't get through. You're going to have to go in on foot."

Shepard looked at Bau "Bau, I need you to come with me, I could use your sniper skills in case any more Batarians attack us while we're outside. Pekue, keep the tank here until the mines are disabled, the computer will show you when the mines are deactivated." She then looked at Ashley "Ash, I need you on the Mako's machine gun, don't use the cannon because you could set off all of the blasting caps. As soon as the mines are deactivated, Pekue will drive you all closer to let you all off."

"Understood Commander" Pekue and Ashley stated and then Shepard and Bau left the Mako.

Shepard activated her Omi tool on her arm and looked at Bau "I've activated the scanner on my Omi-tool" she stated "Now it will scan the area to make sure we don't step on any mines. Remember, if we get too close then they will explode."

Bau pulled his rifle out and looked at the building where he saw several Batarians outside hiding behind some crates they were using as cover "I can see at least five Batarians" he stated and then he fired and shot one in the head as he came out of cover "One less now."

"Come on" Shepard stated "Just take it slowly and if any Batarian comes out of cover, shoot them quickly." Shepard and Bau slowly moved through the minefield and when Shepard heard a loud pinging noise, she knew that they were close to one of the mines so she stepped the other way. Bau was able to shoot a few more Batarians but they weren't moving from the base because the mines would kill them as well. Eventually, Shepard and Bau made it through the minefield and Shepard pulled her rifle and shot the last two Batarians that were hiding. She went over to the control panel in front of the Fusion Torch building and then she was able to deactivate the mines. Then she contacted Pekue "Pekue, the mines are offline, bring the rest of the team here."

"Understood Commander" Pekue called and she drove the Mako closer and the rest of Shepard's team left the Mako and then they entered the building.

...

Just like the first building, there was not much inside this building. There were a few Batarians but Shepard's team quickly took care of them and Shepard went to the controls for the fusion torch which were in a small office on the upper level. Shepard was quickly able to deactivate the torch and now the second Fusion torch shut off.

Shortly afterwards, Shepard heard her radio beep and she activated it "Are you here?" the voice of Kate called "You've got to hurry, you've really pissed them off. You've really began to piss them off. Their leader has begun to set charges everywhere; they're going to blow this whole facility."

"Get away from there!" a voice growled and Shepard realised at that moment that she had been discovered.

...

Kate Bowman and her brother Aaron stood inside with their hands up as several Batarians surrounded them. "Don't shoot please!" Kate begged.

A new Batarian then entered the room and Kate saw that this was the leader, he had paler skin than the others and he wore stronger armour which showed that he was the leader. He looked at the Batarian standing next to him and nodded. The Batarian showed Aaron to the ground and held a pistol to the back of his head.

The leader then glared at Kate "Who's shutting off the torches?" he demanded

Kate looked at her brother but he shook his head telling her not to say anything and he closed his eyes as he knew what was going to happen.

So did Kate so she closed her eyes and said nothing. Then the leader nodded to the Batarian and he pulled the trigger on his pistol and shot Aaron in the back of the head. Aaron quickly fell to the great dead.

The leader then turned to his second in command "Charn, take a small group to the final torch and deal with this problem."

"As you command Balak!" the Batarian known as Charn stated and he left the room with a few others, not seeing the smirk on one of the Batarians faces. This Batarian looked at Kate with a sorry look but silently told her to stay calm.

Balak looked at Kate "Take this one with the others" he ordered and then he looked at the console with was still activated and then he fired a shot at it and destroyed it. Several Batarians then grabbed Kate and began dragging her away and she didn't fight. All she did was look at her brother's dead body.

...

Shepard meanwhile had overheard everything and she looked at the group "Get back to the Mako" she stated "We have to get to the final torch before those reinforcements show up."

...

It was quite a drive towards the final Fusion Torch but they soon arrived. Just like the other Fusion Torches, there were a few Batarians inside the building but Shepard's team quickly took care of them. Shepard then deactivated the torch from the control room. With the last torch shut down, Asteroid X-57 was no longer on a collision course with Terra Nova and the world was now safe.

Then Shepard's radio beeped "Shepard" Verbro called "I just saw the Fusion torch go down. It looks like we've saved Terra Nova."

"The mission's not over yet Verbro" Shepard replied "We still have to retake the main facility. The Batarian leader is there and we have to make sure he pays for this."

"I'll meet you over there." Verbro replied "But there is one more thing, my team found the missing engineers. I'm afraid they're all dead, one was killed in a tank, one was killed in an explosion and the other was killed by a sniper shot to the head."

Shepard sighed at the fate of the missing engineers "We'll send someone to recover their bodies after we've retaken the main facility. I just need to find the codes to enter."

"Good luck Shepard" Verbro called and then he ended the call.

Shepard and her team then went back to the Mako but when they got back to the ground floor of the building, they saw a small group of Batarians gathered there and everyone got out their weapons ready for another fight.

"Hold your fire!" the lead Batarian growled "This doesn't have to end in bloodshed."

Shepard glared at the Batarian "I didn't know you Batarians knew how to stop."

The lead Batarian glared at Shepard, this was Charn, the second in command of the Batarian force here "Look, hijacking this rock was never my idea. We were meant to just grab a couple of slaves but then Balak gets a bright idea and decides to send this Asteroid straight into this Terra Nova. Everyone else thinks it's madness but none of us are willing to oppose Balak, he's very powerful among the Hegemony leadership. Now all I want to do is leave this rock."

"Are your feelings supposed to make things better?" Ashley growled "Taking slaves from Republic worlds is what caused the Verge War in the first place and why your Hegemony fell apart."

"Look, all I do is take orders" Charn growled "Maybe we can work out a deal, Balak is out at the main facility but he's locked the doors and he's also rigged the place to blow. If you don't get there quick enough, he'll destroy that whole place along with every engineer there and even risk blowing this Asteroid apart which would send it back towards Terra Nova even with the Fusion Torches down. I can give you the code to help disable the torches but only if you let us go."

Before Shepard could say anything, a gunshot was heard and Charn gasped as he was shot but not by one of Shepard's team as the shot had came from behind. The other Batarians pulled their guns out but Wrex and Ashley quickly shot them. Charn fell to the ground coughing up blood but turned around to see another Batarian with a pistol who then shot him in the head and he fell down dead.

Wrex and Ashley pointed their guns at the Batarian who held its hands at them "Wait!" the Batarian called and while the voice was rough, it was not as grouchy as others and it seemed that this was a female Batarian "I'm the Batarian spy for the Commonwealth here." She stated

"Lower your guns" Shepard ordered "This Batarian is our ally."

"My name is Bakira Safolka" the Batarian introduced herself "Like our ambassador said, I'm the one who informed them about this incoming attack."

"Can you get us into the main facility?" Shepard asked

Bakira found the codes on Charn's body and nodded "These codes will allow us to enter the facility. However I must state that I know that you wish to capture Balak but doing so may not be possible. Just like Charn stated, Balak had rigged this Asteroid. He's gathered a bunch of thermal bombs which he'll use to blow this Asteroid into two pieces which will go towards Terra Nova."

"Well we still have to save these hostages." Shepard stated "Now let's go to the main facility."

...

Pekue drove the Mako as fast as she could to reach the main facility but when they arrived, they found a fight. Verbro had arrived and was now under fire from some of the hacked turrets, one of which was moving but Shepard quickly took care of them and then she and the team left the Mako.

"Glad to see that you've arrived" Verbro stated and narrowed his eyes at Bakira "I take it this Batarian is our friend."

"She is" Shepard stated "And you will treat her like a member of the team." She then turned to Bakira "Now can you open that door."

Bakira nodded and pulled the code card that she had taken from Charn's body "This code should open the door." She inserted the card into the code reader and the red light on the door turned green "The doors are unlocked, but Balak will have a large number of skilled men with him in here."

"My team have been in tough situations before." Shepard stated and then they all entered

...

After they entered the building, Wrex found a stash of Grenades which he believed would come in useful and he was right. When they entered the main facility, they soon found a large number of Batarians waiting for them and they had an advantage point on the balcony and Bau had to duck behind some crates to avoid sniper fire. But Bau fired back at them and was able to take them out one by one. Wrex and Ashley fought alongside each other taking out Batarian soldiers and Liara used her biotics to throw the others around. It took a while but soon they were able to reach the medical wing which seemed to have been the Batarian stronghold and were able to take the Batarians out. None of them surrendered or even tried to, they fought until the end.

With the Batarians in the medical wing dealt with, Shepard and her team moved back into the main room to try and find the Batarian leader. "You Republicans!" a voice growled and Shepard turned to see a yellow skinned Batarian approaching him on the stairs with a few other Batarians "You're almost as much trouble as you're worth." He then glared at Bakira "And you, I should have known you were one of those traitor spies! I suspected that you were a female!"

Bakira glared at him "And you're just a madman Balak!" she spat "You're going to answer for your crimes!"

"I don't answer to the council or to the Republic Senate!" Balak growled "I'm leaving this Asteroid now and you can't stop me. If you do then I'll detonate these charges which are rigged to blow this Asteroid apart. If that happens then the explosion will send this Asteroid back into Terra Nova and what you did here would be for nothing!"

"What is the point of this?" Shepard growled "Why did you do something like this!"

"This is nothing!" Balak snapped "Your Republic has done far worst to the Hegemony. We were a proud race and now we're broken and large parts of our own government broke away because of your Republic. We've been forced into exile, forced to survive on what we scrounge up. It's been like that ever since the end of the Civil War!"

"You brought that on yourself!" Ashley hissed "You supported pirate raids that attacked our settlements. Did you not think that we would retaliate? You think you can do whatever you want and when you did not get your way, you went to the council who were unwilling to aid you due to your years of raids on their colonies."

"And you talk high for the Batarians!" Bakira snapped "Most of us live little better than the Slaves. I only had a good life because of the state of my family. But as a woman, I was always seen as property so yeah I decided to join the Commonwealth! We broke away because we were all tired of you higher ups telling us what to do and how we should live!"

"Enough!" Balak growled "This arguing is pointless. Like I said, I'm leaving now so stand aside otherwise I'll blow the charges!"

Shepard narrowed her eyes "Go head!" she hissed "Leave but I warn you, the Republic will be on the lookout for you now. You've just made yourself one of their highest wanted criminals!"

Balak smirked "They'll have to catch me first!" he sneered "Oh and I would hurry, there are a few small charges that will explode and kill your engineer friends so I would hurry up and disable them."

Balak and the remaining Batarians left leaving Shepard alone to deactivate the three remaining charges that were set up in the room. Shepard quickly found each of the charges one by one and Bakira was able to disarm them as she was a demolitions expert.

When Bakira had disarmed the last explosive, Shepard went over to the door where the captured engineers had been locked up when she saw the head scientist Simon arrive "I just saw the Batarian leader leave, is that alright?" he asked "And who is this Batarian?"

"Balak was going to set charges that would destroy this asteroid which would undo what we had already done" Shepard stated "And this Batarian is actually a spy for the Batarian commonwealth. She's an ally."

Simon nodded "I guess it was a good thing that you let Balak go then. The first thing we'll need to do is remove the explosives and I know where they'll be. There is a large trench in the asteroid which is where those explosives will be. They'll need to be disarmed. I also ran the numbers Shepard while you were deactivating the torches. An hour later and our course would have been irreversible. X-57 would have impacted Terra Nova right in the heart of Scott, Terra Nova's capital and the most densely populated area but that's not going to happen now thanks to you."

"Terra Nova is safe for now" Shepard stated "But Balak is still out there, he may have been working alone but this action will have consequences. I'll have to inform the Senate of this Balak and now the RSB will be on the lookout for him. He may have gotten away this time but we will find him one day."

"I sure hope so" Simon stated "I don't even want to think what else that Batarian could do." He then looked at Shepard "What about Katie, is she alright?"

"Balak was holding her hostage but she's alright now." Shepard stated

Simon sighed in relief "I'm glad that she's alright." He stated "I have you to thank for the lives of now just my crew but also my family and everyone on Terra Nova; if it wasn't for you then they would all be dead. I have a selection of quality items that I had access to as lead engineer, I want you to have one as a personal thanks. I even have a suit of Quarian Armour that I got from a few Quarians who helped install the Fusion Torches."

Shepard gasped, Quarian armour was hard to come across and Tali might need a better set for the upcoming battles. "I'll take that Quarian set then; I have a Quarian friend who might need it."

"It's all yours commander" Simon stated "Now I need to begin the preparations to get this Asteroid into Terra Nova's orbit."

Before Simon left, Shepard remembered one other thing "Simon, there is something else, my team found the bodies of your engineers, I'm sorry that they didn't make it."

Simon sighed "I'd hoped that they would be alright" he stated "At least some of my team were able to survive this crazy attack." Simon then left with the other engineers following him.

Only Kate remained behind "I can't believe that we survived this" she gasped "When Balak and his men found me and Aaron I was sure that I was dead." She gave a deep breath "For a while I wasn't sure I was going to survive and when he shot Aaron, I believed that I was a goner."

"I may have been forced to let Balak go to prevent him from destroying this asteroid but one day we will find him." Shepard stated "The Senate is not going to allow this to go unpunished."

"I just hope that the Senate don't take this out on all Batarians" Kate stated looking at Bakira "Not all of them are bad." She sighed "It's going to take me some time to get over my experience and also over the death of my brother. You know I still don't even know your name?"

"My name is Commander Jane Alice Shepard" Shepard replied

"Commander Shepard!" Kate gasped "I've heard all about you and your achievements on Elysium during the Blitz. I have to say, it is an honour to meet you, I only wish it was under better circumstances."

"I'm just doing my job" Shepard replied

"You sure are" Kate stated "Now I should probably head with the rest of the team to help them prepare this Asteroid." Kate then left to join the other engineers.

Shepard then looked at her team "Well now that we're done here, we should return to the Normandy. We have to continue with our hunt for Saren."

"Commander Shepard" Bakira then spoke up "I would like to request that I come with you." She stated "I know most of your crew won't trust me since I'm a Batarian but I'm an explosive expert, I can help you deal with any harmful explosives. Anyway, I can't return to spying as my true position has been exposed so I can no longer work as an undercover agent. I've heard of this Saren and I agree that he needs to be brought down."

Shepard thought for a moment, members of the Republic military wouldn't be too pleased about having a Batarian on board due to their reputation but Bakira had proven that she could be trusted and she was right, her knowledge in explosives could be useful so she held out her hand "Welcome onboard the Normandy Bakira"

Bakira shook Shepard's hand and then they all went back to the Mako to await pickup by Joker and the Normandy.

**Chapter End: Another chapter complete and now I've introduced another follower for Shepard. More about Bakira will be explained in later chapters and she will have her own personal side quest in this story just like Garrus and Wrex. Bakira is basically an explosives expert so her main weapon is a powerful shotgun. She's already very intelligent as she is known for creating her own grenades which we will see in later chapters. I also made Balak darker as I decided I needed a better reason to let him go as some members of Shepard's team would not have agreed to let him go so I created a reason why he needed to be allowed to leave. I'll be working on a chapter of Dragon X next but the next chapter on this story will probably be on Noveria.**


	13. Noveria: Port Hanshan:

**Noveria: Port Hanshan**

The mission to save Terra Nova was a success. The colony was safe but the Batarians who had decided to attack the colony had gotten away as they threaten to destroy the Asteroid. After Shepard and her team had returned to the Normandy, Shepard made her way to the comm room when she asked the Normandy's communication officer Doka Phasa to contact Arcturus Station so she could speak with Colonel Yularen and give him the report.

Shepard stood in front of the hologram where she could speak to Yularen "Commander Shepard" Yularen greeted through the hologram "So I take it the mission was a success?"

"It was Colonel" Shepard replied "Terra Nova is safe, but I'm afraid I was forced to let the Batarian leader go. He had explosives ready to blow the Asteroid which would have once again put Terra Nova in danger."

Yularen sighed "Even though the Batarian leader got away, the mission was a success." He stated "Now that we know this Batarian's identity, my agents will be on the lookout for him. He will be one of our top targets for elimination as we now know how dangerous he is."

"What about the political consequences of this incident?" Shepard questioned

Yularen sighed "I won't lie to you Shepard, but this incident will have consequences in the Senate. The Batarians attacking one of our major colonies will have the Senators going against Chancellor Mothma. There will be demands for stronger defences for our colonies to prevent an incident like this again and even though the Batarian Commonwealth informed us of this, Republic views on the Senate and the people will start going against the Batarians. We will do our best to keep the peace but if the Senators get what they want then we will be on the road to war again. And the military men and I agree that the Republic is in no position for a war, not with Saren and the Geth still a threat."

"Well I'll start my hunt for him again." Shepard stated "My next mission target is towards Noveria and I'll need Bau for this one since Noveria is a Citadel world."

"Good luck Commander" Yularen replied "Yularen out." Then the hologram faded and Shepard left the room.

...

Shepard decided that she would speak with their newest member of the team. She went down to the barracks where their new friends, Bakira Safolka. She had her own room in the barracks with the other soldiers but they were all keeping a close eye on her. That was expected, many of these marines had fought the Batarians during the Verge War and many of them had seen them commit atrocities. Even though the Batarian Hegemony had split and Bakira was a member of the Batarian Commonwealth, many Republic citizens still distrusted the Batarians. Campbell and Westmoreland, the top men of Verbro were known to have fought in the Verge War and the two of them were keeping a close eye on Bakira.

Shepard entered the room and found Bakira sitting on a table. She turned around when she heard someone enter the room and stood up when she saw Shepard "Commander" she greeted and saluted "Is there anything you want to speak to me about?"

Shepard smirked "You don't have to salute me Bakira." She stated

"I apologize Commander" Bakira replied "It's just that I don't like the stares that I relieve from most of your crew. I've decided that I'm remaining here unless I'm needed. You don't need to say anything to your crew; I did expect this from them. My people have committed crimes which make people view us in a negative manner. It will be years before the Commonwealth can improve relations."

"Tell me more about your people" Shepard requested "I've heard very little about the Batarians."

Bakira sighed "That doesn't surprise me. The Hegemony government was also very restrictive on what is known about us. Well a brief view of our history is that our home planet is Khar'shan which is located on the edges of the galaxy in the Harsa system located in the Kite's Nest Cluster. I don't know when we first achieved spaceflight but I do know that when we did, we discovered Prothean ruins located on the moon of Bria, one of the moons of Verush which allowed us to colonize the rest of the Kite's Nest and expand to other systems. We did take part in the Krogan Rebellions and the Rachni Wars as there are records that say we were granted an Embassy on the Citadel shortly after the Volus."

"So the Batarians have been a member of the Citadel for many years then." Shepard stated

"We were." Bakira replied "We never got a seat on the council and there were reasons why. It was a known fact that the Batarians were involved in slavery even before the Republic was found and that led to clashes between the Batarians and the Citadel. There are three well known examples of this; the first one happened 1785 CE when the Batarians bombarded the Salarian colony world of Mannovai. Then in 1913 an even worse political problem was caused when the independent Asari world of Esan was annexed by the Batarians, that incident nearly started a war. The final incident was very recent in 2115 when the Batarians and Citadel forces had a skirmish above the planet Enael. The leadership hated the Citadel and didn't like them getting involved but even they knew that we couldn't face the might of the Turians so they made our forces look bigger than they really were and formed friendships with the Terminus Warlords. That is what prevented a war between the Batarians and the Citadel but when the Republic, the situation changed as the Republic were willing and had the strength to take on the Terminus Warlords. So when the Verge War broke out, we were unable to take on the full strength of the Republic."

Shepard had another question "What was normal life for the Batarians. Not their politicians, you might have a better idea on that since the Hegemony forbids anyone speaking about that."

Bakira looked at Shepard "In truth, most Batarians are little more than Slaves. The Hegemony has a strict caste system and you can never rise above it. The situation is even worse for woman, we have almost no rights at all and we're not even allowed in the military or politics or be involved in law. Only the highest ranking caste members are allowed an education and even then, girls are only taught how to be obedient to their husbands. That's why I left, I hated it and I wanted to be someone better than just somebody's property."

Shepard nodded at this "I'm sure that if you work hard and prove yourself then the crew will come to accept you. I won't be able to take you on this mission on Noveria as this is a Citadel controlled world."

"I understand Commander" Bakira stated "I'll just stay in my room for now."

...

Later Shepard made her way down to the storage area where she saw Ashley Williams inspecting her gun at a workbench. Shepard still didn't know much about Ashley so she decided she would have a quick chat with her. Ashley turned around and looked at her "Commander, do you have a few moments to talk?" she asked

"I do" Shepard replied "What is it you wanted to speak to me about?"

"Well, I know that you're our Commanding Officer and you make the choices, but I'm just concerned about something." Ashley stated "This is the most advanced ship in the Republic Navy, I'm just unsure if we should be allowing Citadel races to have access to it. I meant we have to have the Spectre on board because we're working for them. But I don't like having the Citadel races near our technology."

"You seem distrustful of the Citadel." Shepard commented

"I guess you can call it over the fact that my family has a history of serving in the military." Ashley replied "My father, my grandfather and my great grandmother all served in the military. Some of my relatives served in the SDF War and in other wars when we established the Republic. I'm proud to be serving the Republic but I don't like the idea of the Citadel being allowed to tell us what to do."

"Well the Council don't" Shepard replied "We're under orders from the Senate to hunt down this rogue Spectre as well as the council as he is a danger to everyone."

"I understand that but do we really need the Turian, Krogan and Quarian on this mission?" Ashley questioned "I've served with the races of the Republic but never with the Citadel races. They just make me uneasy."

"I understand how you feel." Shepard stated "Back when I served in the Verge War, I saw atrocities committed and was also angry that the Citadel didn't bring the Batarians into line sooner since they've been doing this for hundreds of years. But I realised that you can't hold grudges against the Batarian people as not everyone agrees with the government just like our new Batarian friend. But to move on, you've got to make sure that the mistakes of the past are remembered and be sure never to forget them."

"I understand Commander." Ashley stated "I will work alongside our allies."

Then Joker called over the radio "Hey Commander, we're approaching Noveria, you better come up here with Bau so we can prepare for landing."

"I guess you better prepare for the next mission." Ashley stated.

"I'll see you later Ashley." Shepard replied and then she went back to the elevator to head up to the bridge.

...

The Normandy soon left Hyperspace in the Horsehead Nebula. This Nebula had a number of uninhabited systems and barely surveyed planets and was located at the border regions of the Republic and the Citadel Council. Both governments had claims to the region, but no one had set up a proper colony. There was only one colony in the system which was the planet the Normandy was heading towards, Noveria. Noveria was located in the Pax system and the colony was very small. It was a mixture of different races but the colony was not a colony for settlement as Noveria was a very cold planet that had frequent snowstorms that make travelling difficult. Instead, Noveria was used as a place for researching ideas that was barely legal and was home to research companies both from the Citadel and the Republic. The only type of authority that the Citadel had on Noveria were the Spectres and they were not always welcomed which is why Bau would have to come with them. The Republic did have RSB Agents to make sure that Noveria didn't do anything to threaten the Republic.

As well as Noveria, the Pax system had three other planets in the system. The first one Svarog which was the Pax system's only Hydrogen-Helium Gas Giant but die to the hot temperatures and high winds, the planet was unsuitable for Helium-3 mining and so Noveria had to import their fuel. Noveria was the second planet and the third planet in the system was a tiny ice planet called Morana. Morana was smaller than Earth's Moon with a crust of frozen ice water and the planet was tightly locked to Pax as the same side always faced the sun. The final planet in the system was known as Velus; this planet had a thin atmosphere of xenon and krypton and had a surface of potassium with deposits of magnesium. But this planet once served as a Krogan base during the Krogan Rebellions as when the planet was explored by researches from the joined Citadel-Republic Company Binary Helix, they discovered a base of artefacts from the Krogan Rebellions from the Krogan Warlord Moro which were sold at auction. There was one thing of interest on Velus for Shepard as scans revealed a small abandoned vessel which was brought on board by the salvage team where it was dismantled and a piece of Asari writing was found. Eventually, the Normandy went to land on Noveria in order to investigate since Benezia had been seen here.

...

The Normandy soon began approaching Noveria and headed towards Noveria's main port of Port Hanshan. "Noveria approach control, this is RSV Normandy requesting a vector and a berth." Joker called over the radio

A voice called over the radio from Noveria "RSV Normandy, your arrival was not scheduled; our defence grid is tracking you. State your business."

"We're on joint Republic-Citadel Business." Joker replied "We have a council Spectre on board."

"Landing approved Normandy" Noveria Control called back "Although we find it odd that a Spectre is travelling on a Republic vessel. Be advised, we will be confirming identification on your arrival. If confirmation cannot be established then your vessel will be impounded."

When the radio called off, Joker smirked "What a fun bunch" he said sarcastically, "I might take my next leave here."

Bau looked at Shepard "So who else will be coming with us on this mission?" he asked

Shepard looked at Bau "I can only take a small group with me on this mission." He stated "You have to come along and I think we'll need Liara since her mother is involved. Tali, Wrex and Bakira are no goes as they'll draw too much attention, same with any Republic soldiers so Ashley is out. I guess I'll take Garrus and Kaidan with us as well."

"I'll radio them and tell them to meet you at the Air Lock." Luke stated and then Shepard and Bau left the Bridge and went over to the air lock.

...

A short while later, Shepard along with Bau, Garrus, Liara and Kaidan left the Normandy and walked along the port and were soon met with a small group of security from Noveria.

The leader was a woman who stepped forward "Hold it!" she ordered "I was briefed that you have a Citadel Spectre and I need to know who it is."

"That would be me" Bau stated as he stepped forward "It's been a while Maeko."

The leader known as Maeko looked at him "Spectre Bau" she greeted "I didn't know you were working with the Republic."

"You may be a Spectre but we need to know your business here." A female guard standing next to the captain demanded.

"Kaira!" Maeko snapped "You know that the Citadel Spectres have full authority to do what they want. I may not like it but we have to let them through." She looked at them again "I'm sorry about that, it's just we have business groups who don't like their researching being disrupted."

"This is about the safety of the Galaxy." Bau stated "A Spectre known as Saren has gone rogue and is threatening the Galaxy with an army of Geth. One of his allies, Matriarch Benezia reportedly came here recently."

Maeko thought for a moment "I think I heard about an Asari Matriarch coming here but you'll have to speak with Gianna Parasini, she's the secretary for Administrator Anoleis and she handles the guests we have here. She'll know where this Asari Matriarch has gone."

"Where can we find her?" Bau asked

"She'll be just over at the entrance." Maeko stated "She normally greets guests."

"We'll head over there right away." Bau stated and they walked off with Bau leading since he was the Spectre here. Shepard decided that she would let Bau do the talking here.

...

Shortly after leaving the docks, Shepard and her team arrived at a small office where they saw a dark skinned human who was wearing a bright red dress with a short skirt. She looked like she was waiting for them "Spectre Bau." She greeted "It's good to see you again."

"Gianna Parasini." Bau greeted "I guess you should know why I have come here?" Gianna nodded in response "Well one of the Spectres known as Saren has gone rogue and she has a companion who was reported to have come here, Matriarch Benezia."

"Yes." Gianna replied "Matriarch Benezia arrived here days ago. She said that she was checking on some research that had been funded and she was checking the investment. She's not here right now; she left a few days ago to go to our Peak 15 research complex where her research was taking place. As far as I know, she's still there."

"Then that is where we need to be going." Liara stated

Gianna sighed "I'm afraid that will not be possible." She stated "Administrator Anoleis has closed the roads due to a storm and the fact that the roads are currently dangerous. Some of our transports sending supplies to our other research complexes have been stopped and so Anoleis has closed everything until it is sorted. Even as a Spectre, you cannot travel up there."

"Then how do we get to Peak 15?" Bau asked "We cannot afford to wait around."

Gianna thought for a moment "There is someone who has clearance to enter the garage." She stated "Turian manager Lorik Qui'in has a garage pass but he is having a few problems right now. You could talk to him and he might give you his pass. He's probably over in the Mezzanine."

"Thank you for your help Gianna" Bau stated and then he left to go and find Lorik.

...

Bau led the team to the main part of the port by using the elevator and then he took them into the Mezzanine which was some kind of a bar. They quickly found Lorik sitting at a table and when Bau and the group approached him, he looked up at Bau. "Are you Lorik Qui'in?" Bau asked "I hear that you might be able to help me."

"You're the Spectre who just arrived here at Noveria." Lorik stated "What could an old Turian like me possibly help you with?"

"My team and I need to get to Peak 15 and I heard that you have a garage pass." Bau stated

"So you need my pass." Lorik stated "How fortuitous. I'm the manager of the local Synthetics Insights office. For the moment at least. Administrator Anoleis has closed my office. He claims to be investigating reports of my corruption. He is an interesting man; ever since he took control of rents he has become very wealthy."

"I sense a connection here." Shepard stated

"You are right." Lorik stated "I gathered evidence of Anoleis' corruption but Anoleis has bribed the guards and has accused me of being corrupt. Now he has his hired goons ransacking my office looking for the evidence. I can see that your group needs to get out of to head towards Peak 15 and Mr Anoleis would never grant you a pass. But how about a favour for a favour. If you get my evidence back then I can grant you my garage pass. As a Spectre you should be able to get away with this."

"We can do it" Garrus stated "And afterwards, that evidence can help bring down a corrupt administrator."

"You should hurry." Lorik stated "It won't be long before Anoleis' hired goons find that evidence and destroy it."

...

Bau and Shepard's team left the Mezzanine and then they took another elevator which would take them towards Lorik's office. They soon arrived and they found two guards standing in front and they pulled their pistols when they saw them "Freeze!" he shouted "Hanshan Security, this office is off limits!"

Bau spoke up "Lorik gave me his pass, he let us in."

"Lorik?" one guard questioned "Are you working with him, he's under investigation."

Shepard then spoke up "Anoleis is paying you to shake this place down. Does Captain Matsuo know that you're even here?"

The human guard snorted "Hey, I'm not the one who wants Qui'in. Anoleis has a Varren up his ass about this guy. How about this, you pretend that you never saw us and we pretend that we never saw you." She and a Turian guard walked away but others did not and Bau and the others ended up in a fight with the other Hired Goons but they were trained to rough people us, not fight against professional shooters like Shepard and Bau and not against a skilled Biotic like Liara.

Shepard and Bau soon made it into Lorik's office where they found his terminal. Garrus looked through it and was able to download Lorik's investigation files onto a data disk. With the data downloaded, now it was time to head back to Lorik and get the garage pass. But as they went back to the Elevator, they found their path blocked by more Hired Goons and one of them Shepard recognised as Kaira Stirling, the guard from the docks.

"I don't think you are supposed to be here Bau." Stirling sneered

"Neither are you Stirling!" Bau snapped "I knew that you were corrupt from the last time that you were here!"

"Administrator Anoleis would kick you off of this station." Kaira sneered "I won't, you know what they do to Cop killers back on my world."

"You're just a corrupt cop!" Garrus snapped "You're the type of people that I hate. You take bribe money and they you do what you want and harass people. You're a disgrace to all cops."

"Enough!" Kaira snapped "I'm going to put you all down now."

She didn't even get a chance to fire her weapon before Bau pulled her pistol and shot one of her two guards while Liara threw the other back. "Did you really think that you would beat a well trained Spectre Kaira?" Bau mocked. Kaira just screamed and pulled her Assault Rifle only to be shot multiply times by Shepard.

"Well that could have gone better" Shepard stated

"No one of even going to know that we're here" Bau stated and he activated his own Omi tool and pointed it at the camera which then sparkled "I just hacked their security and deleted all their footage. As far as they're concerned, the Thugs here started fighting each other during an argument." Then they all went back towards the elevator.

...

As Bau led the team back towards the Mezzanine, they found Gianna Parasini waiting for you "Spectre Bau." She greeted "There have been reports of noises from the Synthetic Insights offices. Would you know anything about it?"

"It was probably Anoleis' Thugs ripping the place apart." Bau replied

"I see that you're the same as before" Parasini smirked "I can work with that, listen, before you give that evidence to Lorik, I must speak with you."

"Wait, how did you know about this evidence?" Shepard questioned

"Allow me to introduce myself" Parasini stated "I'm not only just Anoleis Secretary. I am an also part of Noveria's internal affairs."

Liara looked at her "Why is a member of Internal Affairs here?" she questioned

"The executive board knows of Anoleis' corruption." Gianna stated "I've been working here undercover for months. I'm hoping that you might be able to convince Qui'in to testify against Anoleis before the Board. If that happens then we can arrest Anoleis and have this planet run profitably again."

"Anoleis is dirty" Garrus stated "It might be best to help her."

"Also, Anoleis could even start selling technology to the criminal gangs of the Terminus Systems just to get more credits." Liara added

Bau made his decision "Alright, I'll convince Lorik to testify. He might not like it though."

"Well this might help convince him." Gianna added "Tell him that the board might consider making him as the new Administrator since he has a lot of experience in this field."

"I'll talk to him about it." Bau stated

"I'll be waiting at Anoleis' office for you." Gianna stated and then she left.

...

Bau led the team back into the Mezzanine and they found Lorik waiting for them "Spectre." He greeted "Were you able to get the evidence."

Bau held out the data disk "I got you the data but there is something that I want to talk to you about." He stated "I ran into Anoleis' Secretary and she works with the Executive Board. They want you to testify against Anoleis."

Lorik wasn't happy "Now that you have my evidence, you want to tell me how I use it!" he snapped "I've no interest in a Public Spectacle."

"Everyone on this Station is under Anoleis' extortion" Shepard stated "If you help Anoleis fall then you'll be seen as a Hero to them. And how much longer will it be before Anoleis decides to get rid of you by sending his thugs after you."

"Gianna also stated that the Executive Board might consider making you the new Administrator." Garrus added

Lorik sighed "I'm not really interested in the title but you do bring up a good point. Alright, tell Gianna then I'll testify against Anoleis."

"Good to know." Bau stated "We'll go and speak to Gianna and tell her the news." He along with Shepard and the others left.

...

After leaving the Mexxanie, Bau led them towards Administrator Anoleis' office and saw Gianna waiting for them at the front desk. "Well Spectre Bau, did Qui'in agree to testify?"

"Qui'in has agreed to testify against Anoleis." Bau stated.

Gianna sighed "That's a relief, that takes a world of stress off my back." She stated "I'll take the evidence for safe transport. I knew you would help us Bau, it makes me glad that you were the Spectre to come here. Not all the Spectres would be willing to help us. And I managed to get you a garage pass that will help you get towards Peak 15. Now I have an arrest to make, though I wish I could change into something that was easier for me to move around in. I hate skirts."

Gianna left and moments later, Bau and the group heard angry yells coming from Anoleis' office "This is an outrage!" Anoleis yelled and Shepard saw that Anoleis was a Salarian "I'll see to it that you never work in this Sector Again!"

"Yeah, Yeah" Gianna groaned "Get moving. You have a right to remain silent; I only wished that you would use it."

Bau and the team watched as Gianna along with several loyal guards placed Anoleis in cuffs and forced him to move as he kept resistance.

"Well that's another corrupt official fallen." Garrus stated

"We should get moving to the Garage now and get to Peak 15." Liara stated "We've wasted enough time here.

...

Bau led the team towards the garage and the guard allowed them in but warned them of bad weather over in the Aleutsk Valley. But everything was very quiet in the garage, too quiet and that was always a bad sign. They were right as shortly after they entered the Garage, some supply creates burst open and several Geth units came out. There were only three Geth units that attacked them which were two large Geth Destroyers and a Geth Stalker which was a Stealth unit and Shepard was able to fire her Assault Rifle and destroy one of the Destroyers while Garrus took out the other one. Liara managed to throw the Stalker aside with her biotic powers and a shot from Bau's sniper finished it off.

The Gunfire drew Captain Maeko into the garage with several soldiers, she gasped when she saw the Geth "What, what are these thing? Fan out and secure the area, no one gets in or out." The soldiers did as they were told and Maeko looked at Bau "What did you do here Spectre Bau?"

Bau looked at them "We were defending ourselves from the Geth. It seems Benezia smuggled them in the shipping containers."

"That can't be true." Maeko stated "We ran thorough scans of them. There were no power sources and no element zero masses. If Benezia's containers were packed with those things then there are many more out there."

"How many containers did Benezia bring?" Shepard asked "A dozen, a hundred?"

"Dozens at least." Maeko replied "They are machines so you can pack them tightly." She then sighed "I must report to the Executive Board. If word gets out about loose Geth, they'll be an investor panic." She then walked away leaving Bau and the team to prepare their drive up to Peak 15.

The Garage had several methods of transport including a few 74-Z Speeder Bikes that had been adapted to work in Noveria's cold weather but due to the storm, they would not be a good idea. But there was something that they could use, an M35 Mako tank. That would be ideal to travel through the Mountain pass to Peak 15 but they needed someone to drive it so Shepard activated her comm.

"Joker, this is Shepard here, I need you to contact Pekue and tell her to come to the Garage at Port Hanshan. We need her to drive us to the Peak 15 research complex."

"Aye Commander." Joker called "I'm sending her over to you right away."

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: Well another chapter has been completed. I was intending to do all of Noveria in one chapter but the mission is too long. Also, I had Bau take over as leader for the port section since he is a Spectre. Next chapter will be one Peak 15 but it may take a while because I have a few chapters in other stories under work and I have a few University pieces that need to be completed in a few weeks.**


	14. Noveria: Peak 15

**Noveria: Peak 15:**

Pekue had arrived a while later and Shepard and her team quickly got into the tank and Pekue began the drive along the mountain pass to Peak 15 Research Base. The road was snowy and the heavy snowfall made it difficult to see and there was the risk of driving off the side of the mountain. Even though Pekue was a skilled driver, she had to take it easy in order to make sure the Mako did not drive off the side of the Cliff. If she did then it would be very difficult to get back on Mission. The Mako was designed to survive these types of falls but there would be no way of driving back up the mountain as it was too steep.

As they drove towards a large Bridge, Pekue called for Shepard who was on the main cannon "Commander, I'm picking up readings on the monitors." She called "It seems the Geth have set up a barricade nearby."

"And it also seems they've hacked the defence cannons." Garrus added as he looked at his monitors "What should we do Commander?"

Shepard knew the options, they could use the Mako's weapons to take on the Geth or they could drive past them fast. But with the snow and ice, that would be too dangerous "Kaidan, get on the machine gun, you take on the Geth, I'll handle the cannons."

So as the Mako drove on, Shepard fired the Mako's cannon at the Cannons while Kaidan fired the machine gun at the Geth. Pekue had to stop to give them a better aim. The trip did take a while but they were eventually able to make it to Peak 15 Research Base and they drove into the garage where a few Geth Units and even a Krogan were standing guard. They were all quickly taken care of and then Shepard and her team left the Mako.

"Pekue, you best remain here with the Mako. We'll handle any Geth we see along the way." Shepard stated

The Mirialan nodded "Alright Shepard." She stated "But what happens if any more Geth do show up here?"

"If they do then take the Mako back to Port Hanshan and inform us on the radio." Shepard stated The Mako should be strong enough to small numbers of Geth but if a large force arrives then get out of here."

"Understood Shepard." Pekue stated and she got back into the Mako and positioned it in a position where she could use the machine gun.

Shepard and her team went up a set of stairs that took them from the garage and into a small hallway that would take them to the main research complex. Before they went further they saw a pair of Automatic Defence turrets that were facing the opposite way so Kaidan was able to deactivate them without them firing at him.

"Hey, why were those defence turrets facing the wrong way?" Liara asked "They should have helped stop the Geth?"

"You mother must have deactivated them first." Garrus stated "And then turned them around and reprogrammed them to fire at anyone trying to flee the base. They want to keep people in as well as keep people out."

"Goddess!" Liara groaned "My mother has a lot to answer for."

"We need to find her first." Shepard stated "Now let's go."

...

After travelling through several hallways, they arrived at a large laboratory that had several tables set up with monitors. There were several Geth units in the room but they did not know that Shepard and her team were here yet and so Garrus and Bau took position with their sniper rifles and quickly took out a few of the Geth units before the rest of the team charged in with Shepard destroying Geth units with her machine gun and Ashley and Kaidan throwing Geth aside with their biotics. Eventually all of the Geth in the room had been destroyed and they were ready to move on. But Bau first went to chest the monitors to see what information they held.

"Shepard, we should be careful." Bau called to her "According to the files on this computer, this base was used to research some kind of creature which was kept here."

Shepard looked at Bau, she had just found a small room that looked like it once held something "What kind of creatures?" she questioned

"I don't know but the files talk about these creatures which have a queen and work like a Hive." Bau replied "But it seems that some of these creatures broke out when the Geth attacked."

Just then they heard a loud rumbling noise and everyone got their weapons ready. They heard the sound of a door smashing and they turned around and saw something smash one of the doors open. The creature that emerged was not like any they had seen before. This creature looked like a massive insect that was about five meters lone. It walked on four legs and had two large pincers at the front on its head along with some large tentacles. It's mouth also spat some acid which Shepard managed to dodge.

The team now fired upon these new creatures which wasn't easy because their scaly hind was tough to pierce and smaller versions of the creatures also appeared which were much smaller and were green. These one would launch themselves at Shepard and explode which would sting for a while but they were also much weaker than the larger creatures. Eventually, all of the creatures were defeated.

"What were these things?" Kaidan questioned

"I have no idea." Liara stated "Alien creatures are not my area of study."

Bau looked at them "I'm sure I've seen pictures of creatures like this somewhere but I can't remember where." He stated "And the monitors didn't say what kind of creatures were being raised here."

"I guess we'll just have to hope that someone is still alive within the base who can tell us what they are." Garrus stated

"Remember, our mission is to find Matriarch Benezia, whatever was going on here is none of our business." Shepard stated "Now let's move out."

...

After they left the lab, they went up an elevator and arrived in another room that had a large generator at the rear. As soon as they entered the room, a large number of the smaller green creatures started charging towards them and Shepard, Bau and Garrus fired at them with their guns and none of them were able to launch.

When the room was clear, Liara got a better look at the generator at the back of the room "Shepard, that is a backup power system for the station mainframe."

"So let's start it up then." Bau stated and he walked over to one of the power stations, but when he tried to activate it, a computer voice called out throughout the room.

"Critical Start-up Error. Virtual Intelligence user interface offline, Manuel boot required."

"It seems that the Geth must have disabled the VI for the base." Garrus stated "That means the doors are jammed, we'll have to get it restarted for us to move on."

"That must be the VI Core at the back." Bau stated as they looked at a massive piece of equipment "We'll have to rebook it to see what's wrong."

"Can you fix this?" Shepard asked

"I know a few ways of fixing stuff like this from my time as a Spectre and as an SGT Agent." Bau stated "Tali would have been better at this but I'll see what I can do."

Bau went into the VI core which took him down into the mainframe of the system. Bau saw the system needed resetting but thanks to his many years as a Spectre and SGT Agent, he was quickly able to reconnect the system. Shepard then watched as a VI hologram appeared in front of them. This hologram was made to look like a young woman.

"It looks like you're trying to restore this facility." The VI stated "Would you like some help."

At that moment, Bau returned from the core "Help would be great." He stated "What should we call you." VI tented to go by a name when you needed to ask them a question.

"This system is monitored to respond to the name Mira." The VI stated "May I ask your name?"

"I am Jondum Bau of the Citadel's Special Tactics and Reconnaissance." Bau stated "Me and my companions have been sent on an important mission."

"One moment Please." Mira stated "Council authority confirmed, you are entitled to secure access of all systems. Please note that queries relating to corporate secrets require privileged access. Privileged Access is only available to Binary Helix executives. This system is ready to process queries. You may access me at any holographic interface within Peak 15."

"I was sent here to locate an Asari known as Matriarch Benezia." Bau stated "I heard that she was seen in this base."

"Lady Benezia departed on the passenger tramway to the Rift Station subsidiary labs." Mira replied but then she froze "User alert, the passenger tramway is currently inoperable."

"That means we can follow Benezia until we fix it." Liara stated

Bau nodded "What's the situation with the tramway?"

"One moment please diagnostics in progress." Mira replied and was silent for a few moments before speaking again "Critical Failure, Main Reactor Shutdown in accordance with emergency containment procedures. Manuel Restart required. Landline connections are disabled. Passenger tram systems are offline. Report complete, do you have an additional systems status query?"

Bau did have more questioned "What are the landlines and why are they disabled?"

"The Landlines connect my mainframe here at central station to the various sub-facilities of Peak 15" Mira responded "This allows the crew to remotely access my databases from the comfort and security of their own labs. Due to the emergency protocols being implemented within the hot labs, the cabling was automatically ejected."

"That could have something to do with the creatures we found here." Shepard suggested "What were those creatures

"I am programmed to give information on the experiments performed here at Peak 15 to non-workers" Mira stated "you will have to ask one of the scientists here."

"But what about the Main Reactor?" Bau questioned "Why was it shut down?"

"I'm sorry but I was offline at the time of the reactor shutdown." Mira stated "Shutdown could occur if reactor breach seems likely or in case of catastrophic laboratory containment failure. Emergency guidelines suggest that the frigid environment will kill biological contagions, it may also damage mechanical ones."

"Turn off the heat and hope the cold puts whatever you've unleashed to sleep." Garrus stated

"That's all for now." Bau stated

"Very well, shutting down until you need me." Mira replied and then the hologram vanished.

Bau looked at Shepard "We should split up, I'll take Liara and try and fix the main reactor, you take Garrus and Kaidan and fix the landlines."

"Good idea Bau." Shepard agreed "We'll meet you back at the Tram doorway." And then she took Kaidan and Garrus through the door behind them while Bau took Liara towards the door which would lead them to the Main reactor.

...

Shepard, Garrus and Kaidan took the elevator which took them to the rooftop of the Central Station and they found several more of the creatures they had found in the labs. Luckily there was a glass dome which protected them from the extreme cold of Noveria. It took them a while to take all of them out but soon all of the creatures were dead. With the Creatures dead, Shepard found the controls for the landlines and was able to reconnect them.

"We should head back, hopefully Bau will have fixed the main reactor." Garrus stated.

...

Bau and Liara took an elevator which took them deeper into the complex where the Main reactor for the Central Station was. They didn't find any of those strange creatures which they did find a large group of Geth including a Geth Prime. Bau was very skilled and was able to shook each of the smaller Geth troopers one by one using a silenced rifle so he did not alert the others. With the Geth Prime, Liara used her biotics to throw the Prime aside and Bau fired his assault rifle which shattered the Prime to pieces. With the Geth taken care of, Liara and Bau made their way to the main reactor and they saw what the problem was.

"The He3 fuel line is cut." Liara stated when they saw that the main fuel line had been cut, most likely by the Geth. Bau quickly reattached the fuel line and the reactor sprang into life.

"We should head back." Bau stated "Now that the Reactor is online, we can hopefully head on to the Hot Labs." The two of them went back up the elevator and found Shepard, Kaidan and Garrus waiting for them with the corpses of a few more of those strange creatures they had found in the labs "Did you reconnect the Landlines?" he asked

"We did." Shepard replied "But for some reason, the tramway door is still not opening."

"Maybe Mira will know what's going on." Liara suggested

"I'll ask her." Bau stated and he went over to the VI core and reactivated the hologram.

"Connections restored." Mira stated "Processing new data, user alert, unable to connect to the hot labs."

"What's going on with the tram station now?" Bau asked

"Dangerous biological agents are present in the tramway decontamination chamber." Mira replied "The Tram station has been sealed in the interest of crew safety. Activation of the failsafe plasma jets is recommended prior to access."

Bau knew what Mira meant, some of those creatures had gotten into the decontamination chamber and must be eliminated "How do I activate this failsafe?" he asked

"The controls for the failsafe system are located in the security checkpoint outside decontamination." Mira responded but then she paused for a moment "User alert, the failsafe system is currently inoperable."

Bau knew that they would have to try and fix this problem before they went ahead "And how do we fix the failsafe?" he asked

"There is a hardware fault in the control system." Mia responded "This can be repaired on site using a standard Omi tool."

That made things easy since Bau had access to powerful Omi tools since he was a Spectre "I can fix the controls with my Omi tool, override the controls and that will be all"

"Very well Spectre." Mira responded "Logging you out." Mira then vanished and Bau led the team though the now unlocked door.

They went through a few more corridors and arrived at the decontamination chamber where they found the doors sealed and a number of those creatures trapped inside. When they entered the security checkpoint, they found a dead guard with a number of shots in his back. "I guess the Geth must have opened these doors to allow those creatures to escape and this guard must have sealed them shut to prevent more from getting here." Liara stated

Bau looked at the controls and activated his Omi Tool "It will take me a minute but I can fix the failsafe controls which will activate the plasma jets, that will dissolve those creatures in there and then we can pass through."

While Bau fixed the controls, Kaidan searched the nearby lockers and found a very powerful Acolyte pistol which was much more powerful than the M-3 predator pistol. Then Bau finished fixing the Failsafe and activated the plasma jets. Shepard and the others watched as hot plasma was poured into the decontamination chamber which made the creatures screech in pain before collapsing to the floor. After about 5 minutes, the jets shut themselves off and the red light above the doors changed to green and unlocked. They then carried on through a large corridor until they came to the tram station. After they all got onto the tram, Shepard pressed the leave button and the doors closed and then the tram began to leave the station.

"Departing Central Station." A voice called over the radio of the tram as the tram left the station "Destination, Rift Station."

"Hopefully we can find my mother there." Liara stated

"And maybe we can find out just what these creatures are." Bau added "The council will want to know just what was going on here."

...

The Tram travelled through a large tunnel cut through the mountains of Noveria and eventually arrived at Rift Station. "Now arriving at Rift Station, Binary Helix Research Facility."

Bau and Shepard led the group through Rift Station but found the doorway was currently not in use and so they had to go into a small side room where there were two elevators, one went down into the Hot Labs while the other went up into Rift Station sleeping chambers. The Hot Labs elevator was currently not in use so they went towards the Sleeping chambers.

When they arrived, they found a man made barricade had been built out of boxes and tables with a few guards pointing their rifles at them until the captain, a bald male human, shouted at them "Stand down men!" he ordered and then he looked at Bau "Sorry about that, we couldn't be sure who was on that tram."

"I guess you've encountered those creatures before?" Shepard questioned

"Encountered, fought and seen men ripped apart by them." The captain stated "The name is Ventrails, captain of Binary Helix private guards here at Rift Station. Look, you're not those creatures and that's reason enough for me to not shoot but I would like to know who you are?"

Bau stepped forward "I am Spectre Jondum Bau from the Citadel."

"Well, I won't look a heavily armoured horse in the mouth." Ventrails stated "These aliens overran the hot labs last week, only Han Olar managed to get out. The first time we knew about these creatures was when they were clawing into the command post, we had a lot more staff then. We've managed to secure ourselves here in the barracks and down in the small laboratory but our supplies are running low and a few of our people have fallen ill with some kind of toxin from these creatures."

"Have you seen an older Asari here?" Liara asked "We're on the lookout for an Asari called Benezia?"

"Well there is an Asari over in the barracks." Ventrails stated "But her name is Alestia Iallis and she's been here for a while. The board did send another Asari over here to clear up the mess. But she went into the Hot Labs and we've not seen her since."

"We'll go and talk to her but we need to know more about these creatures." Bau stated

"Sadly I don't know what these creatures are." Ventrails stated "Han Olar probably will so you might want to speak with him, he's over by the laboratory. As for the hot labs, there's an emergency elevator that will take you down, but you'll need this key card to access it." Then he was distracted when they heard a loud shrieking noise "Hell, man the perimeter!" Suddenly a bunch of the creatures burst from the vents but Shepard and the team quickly took care of them before anyone got killed. Ventrails then returned "Thanks, I see that you really can fight. Listen, good luck on your mission but please hurry, we're not going to last much longer."

"The quicker we get into the Hot labs the better." Bau stated "But we should speak with Han Olar first to find out what these creatures are."

...

Shepard and the others had gone into what had once been the canteen of Rift Station before they took an elevator down into a small laboratory where there were a few Binary Helix guards standing on guard near a quarantine zone and they saw Han Olar standing next to a pillar. Han Olar was a Volus scientist who was the only survivor from the Hot Labs and so he knew what these strange creatures were and both Shepard and Bau agreed that they needed to know more about them.

"I know why you have come to see me." Han stated "I heard about the Citadel Spectre being here and my guess is that you're here to find out about them."

"Yes, we came here to know what these creatures are." Bau stated "If they came from the Hot Labs we need to know what these creatures are."

"You want to know more about the Rachni?" Han stated

That caught everyone's attention, everyone widened their eyes with disbelief and Liara stated "That's preposterous. These creatures can't be Rachni."

Shepard knew why Liara was saying that. She knew about the Rachni, they were an insect species discovered nearly two thousand years ago by a Salarian research vessel and they began the Rachni Wars where they began attacking the Citadel Colonies. Since the Rachni thrived on Toxic worlds, it was impossible for the Citadel to defeat them until the Salarians uplifted the Krogan and by 300 CE, the Rachni were declared extinct but this event was the reason why the Citadel banned the opening of Relays to prevent another incident like this happening again. "How can these creatures be the Rachni?" Shepard questioned "The Krogan wiped them out hundreds of years ago?"

"Binary Helix found a Rachni derelict ship that had been floating adrift for a thousand years." Han Olar explained "There was an egg inside and they brought it here."

One of the other scientists nearby yelled at Han "Shut up! Do you want to get us all killed?"

"I don't any control over who lives and who dies!" Olar spat back "Do you?"

"If you want to be crazy, then be the quiet kind!" a Turian scientist spat

"I'm sane." Han said softly "Oh god, am I sane?"

Bau had another questioned "Captain Ventrails said that an Asari went into the Hot labs, could she survive there?"

"It's possible." Olar claimed "The Rachni were sensitive to biotics. Maybe she found a way to remove them but not destroy them completely."

Kaidan looked at them "Well now that we know what these creatures are, we should go to the Hot Labs and find Benezia."

"Agreed." Bau stated "Finding her was our mission after all."

...

Shepard, Bau and the others headed back towards where they first met Ventrails and went back down the elevator and they used the key card to unlock the other elevator which had been out of use and they took the elevator down into the Hot Labs. But when they arrived, they saw a man sitting on a chair. The room was surrounded by glass walls which were cracked in some areas and Shepard could see what looked like a hive. Shepard and her team wanted to get out of here as soon as they could before the Rachni swarmed them.

Shepard approached the man sitting in the chair "Are you here to secure the situation?" he asked with a strong Russian accent.

"Wait, who are you and how did you survive down here?" Bau asked "We were told that Han Olar was the only survivor?"

The man sighed "My name is Yaroslev Tartakovsky." He stated "As to how I survived, I have no idea, my memory is not that great. But what has happened here is our fault."

"What exactly happened here?" Bau questioned

"Binary Helix found the Rachni Egg on a derelict ship." Yaroslev explained "There were many eggs on that ship in cryogenic suspension. They brought an egg here, they planned to clone Rachni, mass produce them and create an army."

"Something like that could be devastating if it got into the wrong hands." Bau stated "A Rachni army even if cloned could be devastating."

"These companies only care about money." Kaidan snorted "They don't care about the consequences of their actions!"

"I guess the cloning only made the Rachni feral?" Liara stated

Yaroslev shook his head "That is not quite what happened." He explained "The egg we brought back turned out to not be a common Rachni Egg, it was a queen. After the queen laid her eggs they moved her to Rift Station, they believed that without the queen they can raise the babies to be obedient."

"Wait, even if you did have a queen, wouldn't you need a male to get eggs?" Shepard questioned

"The Rachni might be like the Asari." Liara suggested "Male and female have no terms for us."

"That is close." Yaroslev stated "The Queens already have the genetic code of their fathers. Eggs are carried away from their colonies to hatch alone. Rachni queens can lay eggs in hours and hatch colonies in days, that is how the spread so quickly."

"I guess separating the babies from their mother was a bad choice?" Shepard stated

Yaroslev nodded "It was the wrong thing to do." He replied "I believe that without the queen to teach them, the babies do not develop properly and their minds don't function the same and the Rachni are uncontrollable."

"Shepard, this is all fascinating but we have a job to do." Bau stated

"Yeah, sorry." Shepard apologized and looked at Yaroslev "Was there an Asari Matriarch here?"

Yaroslev looked confused "I do not remember seeing an Asari come in here."

"That means my mother is alive." Liara gasped "But why did Captain Ventrails tell us to come here?"

"I guess we should ask him." Garrus stated

"But we better deal with the Rachni here first." Kaidan added.

Yaroslev nodded "It is a sad thing but these Rachni are beyond saving. They must be euthanized and the only way to do that is to set off the neutron purge. It creates a burst of neutron radiation; it will kill everything here in the hot rooms."

"So how do we set off this Neutron Purge?" Bau asked

"The controls for the purge are behind me." Yaroslev stated as he stood up "All you have to do is insert the key and then I will give Mira..." that was all he was able to say as none of them had noticed one of the larger Rachni soldiers had sneaked behind him and then thrust one of his sharp tentacles through Yaroslev's back and out through his belly which caused his guts to spill out. Shepard and her team jumped back in horror as Yaroslev was thrown aside. Shepard and Bau quickly pulled their assault rifles and fired all they had at the Rachni which killed it.

Bau knelt before Yaroslev but they all knew that he was dead. Bau sighed as he took the purge codes from Yaroslev's pocket "I guess the only thing left to do is to start the Neutron Purge."

Shepard looked at Garrus, Liara and Kaidan, "you three wait by the elevator" she stated "Bau and I will start the Neutron Purge and then come after you, there won't be enough time for us all to get into the Elevator from the office."

"As you wish commander." Kaidan stated and he, Liara and Garrus went back to the Elevator and waited.

Shepard and Bau went over towards the back room and Bau activated the Mira Terminal and the VI Hologram appeared "Connecting, I have full access to the facility and am at your disposal." The VI stated

"Activate the Neutron Purge." Bau stated

"I'm sorry but I cannot do that without the proper code authorization." Mira replied

Bau pulled out the code he had taken from Yaroslev "Code Input: 875-020-079. Code Omega local execution." He said to the VI.

"Code Omega execution in 120 seconds." Mira replied

"Now let's get out of here." Shepard stated and she and Bau quickly left the room only to hear gunfire and looked to see that a swarm of Rachni were now in between them and the elevator where Kaidan, Liara and Garrus were fighting against them. Liara saw them and quickly used her biotics to help clear a path for Shepard and Bau and both of them ran into the elevator and Kaidan pressed the button to start the elevator which began to take them up. They all heard the loud bang and the rumble when the Neutron Purge started, killing all of the Rachni in the Hot Labs.

...

After leaving the Hot Labs, Bau and Shepard went back up the elevator they went up before, they wanted to have a word with Captain Ventrails, he said that Benezia had gone into the Hot labs but no Asari had been there. When they arrived at the barricades, Captain Ventrails was not there but they found him in the canteen of Rift Station.

Ventrails was surrounded by a large number of his men "I'm sorry." He apologized "But Benezia gave us orders, she wants this place purged."

"So you are working with Benezia!" Kaidan spat "I knew something was wrong with you."

Ventrails sighed "It's nothing personal, it's just my orders. Open Fire!"

The guards all began firing at them but Liara created a biotic Barrier to block the shots and then sent it flying towards the guards which threw them back. Ventrails was cut down by fire from Shepard's assault rifle and quickly, all of the guards were dead and they were able to carry on through the base and now the quarantine zone was open. Benezia was likely in there.

As the team headed on into the next room, they saw a number of the guards holding a few of the scientists hostage which included Han Olar. Before any of the scientists were shot, Bau and Garrus fired their sniper rifles which took a few of the soldiers which saved the scientists about to be shot. Then an Asari who Shepard had known to be called Alestia Iallis fired her biotics at Shepard's group only to be thrown against a wall by Liara.

Han Olar walked over to them when their attackers were killed "Many thanks Shepard." He said "I had no idea that Alestia and Ventrails were working for that Asari Matriarch."

"That Asari Matriarch is Benezia." Bau stated "She's working for a Rogue Spectre called Saren."

"I'm afraid that I don't know anyone called Saren but I do know that a Rogue Spectre is bad." Olar stated "My guess is that she was sent here to secure the Rachni Queen."

"With a Rachni Queen, Saren could create a massive army quickly." Kaidan stated

"I do not know how Saren could have succeeded where we failed." Olar replied "But listen, please, I know you all have a bad opinion of the Rachni but please, do not kill the queen, she is the last hope of a species, no one wants to be known for destroying an entire species."

"We will just have to wait and see." Bau sighed "The Council won't be too happy about the Rachni returning."

"Thank you for at least considering it." Bau stated "Now it may be best if I get out of here." Olar and the other scientists then left the room while Bau and Shepard's team carried on going forward.

...

As Shepard and the group carried on through Rift Station, they encountered more of Benezia soldiers and a few more Rachni that had escaped from the Hot Labs. Eventually they went through a large tunnel cut into the mountains of Noveria. Eventually, they arrived at the main lab where the Rachni Queen was kept and where Benezia was waiting.

Matriarch Benezia looked much older than Liara and her skin was almost purple. She wore a long black dress and headdress and was standing in front of a large tank where the Rachni Queen was kept. The Rachni queen looked like a normal Rachni soldier only 10 times larger and it seemed that she would grow even bigger.

Benezia saw that they had entered the room "You do not know the privilege of being a mother." Benezia stated while looking at the Rachni Queen, "There is power in creation, to shape a life, turn it into happiness or despair. Her children were to be ours, raised to hunt and slay Saren's enemies." She walked towards them "I will not be moved by sympathy, no matter who you bring into this confrontation.

Shepard now knew why Benezia had come here, she was to secure the Rachni Queen and use it to create an army for Saren and she also knew that she was talking about Liara being here "Liara is here because she wants to be here, not because I asked her to."

"Indeed." Benezia stated "Tell me my daughter, what have you told them about me?"

"What could I say mother?" Liara questioned "That you're insane, evil, should I explain how to kill you?"

Benezia laughed "Tell me, have you faced an Asari Commando before, few humans have?"

"I guess that means we will have to fight after all." Bau stated "I wanted to take you alive so you could answer for what Saren's done."

Benezia laughed "And Spectre Bau, Saren did say that the Council might send you after him, you are one of the best Spectres."

"And I also don't kill civilians like Saren does to get the job done!" Bau spat

"Indeed." Benezia smirked and then a couple of Asari Commandos appeared through one of the doors while Benezia fired a biotic ball at Shepard which forced her to roll to the side. Benezia then jumped on top of the Rachni Queen's tank which forced Shepard and the team to take out the Asari Commando's down.

The Asari Commando's were tough, they were the best trained Asari in both weapons and biotics which made them very tough to fight. Liara and Garrus had to take cover from one and were having trouble from the Commando's machine gun. But this commando was so distracted by Liara then she did not see Bau get into position and fired at the Asari with his Sniper Rifle which ended the Commando. The other Commandos were also quickly taken out.

With the Commando's down, Benezia sent another biotic force field at Shepard's team and then more Asari Commando's entered the room along with a few Geth Snipers. This fight took a bit longer but eventually, the Geth were destroyed and the Asari Commando's were dead.

Benezia then went in front of the Rachni Queen's tank "This is not over!" she hissed "Saren is unstoppable, my mind is filled with his light, everything is clear."

Liara noticed something was wrong "Mother, what's wrong with you, you don't seem to be yourself."

Benezia turned around and glared at them "I will not betray him!" she spat but her words looked like they were forced as she started to hold her head in pain "You will, you..." she screamed as she held her head before she looked at them again "You must listen to me, Saren still whispers in my mind, I can fight his compulsions briefly but the indoctrination is strong!"

Shepard now realised something, from what Benezia was saying and how she was reaction, she looked like she was under some sort of mind control, she was not helping Saren willingly, she was being forced "What is Saren planning?" she questioned

"And what does he want with me?" Liara added

"It is a terror to be trapped in your own mind." Benezia stated "To beat upon the glass as your hands torture and murder. I was powerless but a tool for Saren. As for his plans, he sent me on a mission to find the location for the Mu Relay, its position was lost thousands of years ago."

"Wait, how can you lose a Relay Position and why does he need a Relay, couldn't he just use Hyperdrives?" Garrus questioned

"Hyperdrives are very complex, they're not a simple as you think" Shepard stated "That's why the Council have been unable to use them properly. And even so, the Hyperlanes follow the same route as the Mass Relays, you can't just blast from one system to another, you could crash straight into a planet, Republic Pilots go through a lot of Training before they can use Hyperdrives."

"As for the Mu Relay, I remember reading something about a Relay that was blown out of orbit by a Supernova. That could be the Mu Relay." Liara stated

"It is." Benezia stated "The Rachni were able to locate the Mu Relay but when the Krogan wiped them out, the location was lost. This Rachni Queen has the location and I downloaded the data onto this data disk, here take it." Benezia handed over a data disk to Benezia

"Knowing the location of the Relay is not enough." Bau stated "The Relay could connect to many systems, we need to know where Saren's trying to go."

"Mother, did Saren say where he was going?" Liara asked

Benezia shook her head "Saren never said, only that he is looking for something called the Conduit. But you must move quickly, I sent Saren the location before you arrived." Then Benezia started groaning and grabbed her head again "Ahhh, you have to stop me! I can't... his teeth are in my ear... Fingers on my spine... Saren is close to finding the rest of the data, you have to..." she screamed some more.

Liara gasped "Mother no!" she yelled "You have to fight him! Don't leave!"

Benezia screamed "I'm sorry Liara, you've always made me proud. No matter what the other Matriarchs say, you are the best of us." She screamed before she turned around and her eyes were glowing purple "DIE!" she fired a Biotic blast at them which knocked them all back and her biotic barrier blocked all shots from Garrus, Bau and Shepard's Assault rifles. Liara and Kaidan used their own Biotic powers to try and break Benezia's barrier but Benezia was very strong with her Biotic Powers since she was an Asari Matriarch. But eventually, she began to use up all of her power eventually, her barrier broke and as soon as it broke, a full magazine of bullets hit her stomach. Benezia then collapsed against the Rachni Queen's tank.

"Mother!" Liara yelled and ran over to her mother.

Benezia managed to give her daughter a weak smile before turning to Shepard "I cannot go on Shepard! You will have to stop Saren."

"Hold on Benezia." Shepard gasped as she knelt in front of the dying Asari Matriarch "We have Medi gel, we can heal you."

Benezia shook her head "No, Saren is still in my mind. Even if you heal me, he will take over my mind again. I will never be free of him. I won't let that happen. Please, just let me die."

"Mother no!" Liara cried "Please, don't leave me!"

Benezia smiled "Good night my little wing." She said softly "I will see you again with the dawn." And with those last words, Benezia's body went prone as he eyes closed and with that, Matriarch Benezia died.

Shepard sighed and placed her arm on Liara's shoulder who was kneeling in front of her mother's body "Liara, I'm sorry. I really am."

Liara used her sleeve to dry her tears "Even after what she did, she was still my mother and Saren had her under some kind of mind control. Saren will pay for this, he'll pay for causing my mother's death."

"He'll pay." Shepard agreed "But first we have to find him."

"We better get back to the Normandy then and make preparations." Garrus stated

"But before we do, we still have one more thing to deal with here." Bau stated and pointed at the Rachni Queen, "What do we do with her."

Shepard walked close to the Rachni Queen's tank but didn't see one of the Asari Commando's bodies start to get up and start walking towards her like a zombie. Shepard then jumped in shock when the Rachni Queen banged it's head against the glass walls and Shepard backed into the Asari which made her pull her pistol. The Asari walked next to the tank in front of where the Rachni Queen's mouth was and her eyes opened.

"This one, serves as our voice." The Asari said "We cannot sing, not in these low spaces, your music's are colourless."

"What's going on?" Shepard questioned "Who am I speaking to?"

"We are the mother." The Asari replied "We sing for those left behind, the children you thought silenced."

Bau gasped "The Rachni Queen is speaking through the Asari." He stated "The stories said that they spoke to their young through singing we didn't understand."

"How are you speaking through the Asari?" Shepard questioned as she approached the tank.

"Our kind sings through the touchings of though." The Rachni Queen replied through the Asari "We plunk the strings and the other understands, she is weak to urging. She has colours we have no names for but she is ending. Her music is bittersweet, it is beautiful. You are not in harmony with those who hoped to control us. Will you sing? Will you release us? Are we to fade away once more?"

Bau knew what was going on "Shepard, the Rachni were responsible for the near destruction of the Citadel nearly 1000 years ago. What if that happens again?"

"There are acid tanks attached to her tank." Kaiden stated as he looked at the tank "If you activate them then that acid will dissolve anything that it touches, they must have been installed for a reason."

"Shepard wait." Liara stated "This is a hard choice but do we really have to kill this queen? The Citadel let the Krogan go too far, this is a chance for them to atone. This queen has done nothing to us."

Shepard knew that she would have to make a hard choice, if she released the queen then there was the chance of a second Rachni War happening. But if she killed the queen, she would be responsible for dooming an entire race, no one wanted to live with that.

"You companions hear the truth." The Rachni queen stated "You have the power to free us, or to return our people to the silence of memory."

"If I let you live, will you attack the other races again like the Rachni did before?" Shepard questioned

"No." The Rachni Queen responded "I do not know what happened in the war. We only heard discordance, songs of the colour of oily shadow. We would seek a hidden place to teach our children harmony. If they understood then perhaps we would return."

Shepard made her choice "I will not be responsible for the destruction of an entire race. You can go."

Bau looked at her "Shepard are you sure about this?" he questioned "Look, I know I'm the Spectre here but you made the decisions here. You know the council will not be too happy about this?"

"I will not be named for the destruction of an entire race." Shepard stated "Besides, the Rachni may be misunderstood, we have an insect species in the Republic and they get on just fine. Besides, she may be useful to the Galaxy in the future."

"You gave us a chance to compose anew." The Rachni Queen replied "We will remember, we will sing songs of your forgiveness to our people." The Asari body dropped to the floor and Shepard walked over to the controls as the Rachni Queen looked at her through her tank. Shepard activated the controls and tank rose up and a door opened. The Rachni Queen gave one last look at Shepard before running through the hole to freedom.

"Well now that our mission here is done, we should head back to the Normandy." Bau stated

"Agreed." Shepard stated "We have taken out part of Saren's operation but Saren is still out there. We'll discuss our plans when we get back to the Normandy."

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: Another chapter finished and this was the longest chapter yet, a lot longer than I originally thought it was going to be. This is my first chapter of 2020. I would like to address some of the reviews I've been getting, I know people want to see Star Wars technology but I don't want to have the Republic too overpowered but went we get to the Armstrong Nebula and Feros parts, you will see a proper battle written in those chapters but the next chapter will be a few side quests. I have also rewritten the timeline, the reason for this was because I felt it was a bit too unrealistic about how quick the Republic grew in power so now the Mass Effect Timeline is not the same and I also brought in a few extra species into the Republic as well as extending the verge war.**


	15. The Listening Outposts:

**The Listening Outposts:**

After Shepard and her team returned to the Normandy, she had gathered her team into the meeting room. With Benezia down, they had to start planning their next move. "What's our next move Commander?" Ashley asked "Are we going to head to the Mu relay?"

Shepard shook her head "We know that Saren is looking for the Mu relay but we don't know where he's heading through it. They relay could link to dozens of systems, unless we know which one he is heading for, we can't go there yet."

"The commander is right." Liara stated "We know the Mu Relay will take Saren to this conduit but we still don't know where it is. We need to find out more"

"Liara's right." Bau stated "I'll speak with the council and see if they have anymore leads." He then sighed "I'll also need to send my report to them; they aren't going to be very happy about the Rachni."

"This is a tough mission." Shepard stated "But until we know more about Saren, we can't go running blind. For now, dismissed."

The crew began to leave except for Verbro who walked towards Shepard "Hey Commander, while you were down on Noveria, we heard a distress call from the nearby Strenuus system. There was a distress from a ship that has been attacked, it had a republic signal."

"And Republic law states that if we hear a ship in distress then we must assist them." Shepard added "Alright, we'll go check it out."

...

The Strennus system was in the same Horse Head cluster just like the Pax system where Noveria was located. This system had five planets which included two standard hydrogen-helium gas giant called Antitarra and Thesalgon. Then there was a lifeless rock known as Trekyn which is covered in craters and a Salarian religious cult claims to resemble their goddess. The first planet in the system did look like it could be habitable but due to its close proximity to the sun, the planet was too hot but a scan did uncover a space probe where a League of One medallion was uncovered. But it was the final planet Xawin that was discovered to have the distress signal. This small ice planet had a damaged Republic Freighter called the RSV Majesty nearby which had recently seen battle against someone either Geth or pirates. The ship had been blown open but the escape pods had been launched.

Shepard looked at the wreckage of the freighter from the Normandy's Bridge "Commander, the distress signal is coming from a base on Xawin." Joker commented "But I'm detecting a Mercenary base, you'll have to use the Mako to go down their. I can't land due to there being a few anti-ship turrets surrounding the base."

"I'll take the Mako down there." Shepard stated "Get Kaiden, Verbro, Garrus and Bakira down to the bay, I'll take them on this mission."

"Aye Commander." Luke stated "But one last warning, the planet is very cold and even your suits will only protect you for so long. Remain in the Mako as much as you can."

"Alright Luke." Shepard stated and she left the room.

…

As soon as her team was assembled, the Mako was launched and they landed on the surface of Xawin as close as they could to the Mercenary base. The quickest route was to travel north west from the landing site towards the base and on the way, they came across an old Turian wreckage where Garrus identified the insignia that was marked on the wreckage as belonging to the Chatti outpost.

After that, they carried on going towards their target and eventually, they arrived at the base which was surrounded by four heavy turrets as well as a few watchtowers with snipers on. Thanks to the Turrets, Pekue had to keep driving to stay out of range of the turrets but Bakira had an idea. She was an explosives expert and told Shepard that she could blow the turrets up. So she was dropped off at one of the turrets along with Garrus who gave her covering fire. Garrus was able to take out several snipers using his own sniper rifle and Bakira got to the controls of one of the turrets. The Mako kept fire off of them while Bakira worked and soon she was able to hack the turrets and set them to self-destruct which they did. Kaiden in the Mako then took out the last of the Snipers and they were then able to enter the outpost.

The outpost was small, there was not much in this base but it was being used as a base for privateers. Privateers were basically legal pirates, who raided enemy ships in times of war and were employed by different factions, but right now, the Republic was not at war and so privateers were not needed so it was known for privateers to go into piracy which seemed to be the case here. Shepard's seem were able to quickly take out the pirates and went to see if they could find any information. When they entered the offices, they found the body of a human officer wearing a republic uniform. His ID identified him as Captain Wilhelm of the RSV Majesty, the freighter that was drifting above Xawin. It seemed that be had managed to get into an escape pod and escape with some of his crew but were captured. A video recording nearby show that he had been beaten by the pirates which explained the bruises on him and they were trying to get information about Republic shipping to raid. Wilhelm refused to tell them anything and eventually, he was beaten to death but his death was very recent. Shepard took Wilhelm's code stick and rank plaque so that he could give them to his family.

Shepard looked at her team "We're done here now so I guess we should blow this place up." She stated "That way it won't just get occupied by more mercenaries."

Bakira nodded "I found some high explosives in the cargo bay." She stated "I'll rig them to explode after we leave." Bakira quickly set all of the explosives in one area of the base and was able to arm a remote detonator to explode the base when they left. After the explosives were set, Shepard and her team left the base and got into the Mako and drove away. When they were a safe distance, Bakira activated the detonator and there was the sound of a colossal explosion as the base exploded. Then Shepard radioed Joker to pick them up.

...

After Shepard arrived back on the Normandy, she was contacted by Communication Officer Doka Phasa "Commander, we've got a transmission from Republic Headquarters, Colonel Yularen would like a word with you."

"Copy Phasa" Shepard replied, "I'll be right over there." Shepard soon made her way over to the Normandy's Communication's room which was near the Communication's array of the Normandy which allowed them to transmit messages. The Togruta Officer was waiting for her.

"Commander, Colonel Yularen is contacting you. He needs to speak with you in person, I'm patching him through." Doka Phasa stated and she activated the hologram and Colonel Yularen appeared.

"Commander Shepard." Yularen stated "I've read your report on Noveria, I can't say that the Senate is happy but most of them are glad that you didn't kill this Rachni Queen, we don't want to be responsible to causing a whole race to die out."

"But I guess the Citadel aren't too happy." Shepard replied

"They aren't" Yularen replied "But there isn't much that can be done about it right now. But there is one thing, our listening outposts in the Styx Theta have saddening been attacked and the creatures that are attacking them match the descriptions of the Rachni, we need you to go and investigate."

"Wait, hold did the Rachni get there?" Shepard questioned "The Styx Theta is in Republic Territory and is far away from Noveria?"

"I'm hoping that you will be able to provide us answers." Yularen stated "Normally Republic Command would have sent a unit of troopers there to investigate but I have a feeling that Saren is behind this. If he's aware of our listening Outposts then he may be using the Rachni to destroy them. It may be best to leave our Spectre Friend out of this one, we don't want the Citadel to know that we've been spying on them."

"Understood Colonel." Shepard replied and ended the call then she contacted Joker "Joker, we've got another mission, take us to the Styx Theta."

"Aye Commander." Joker replied over the comm, "Plotting a course to the Styx Theta, we should be there in a few hours."

...

As the Normandy went through hyperspace towards the Styx Theta, Shepard decided to go and speak with Garrus down in the Cargo Bay. "Hey Commander." Garrus greeted when he saw Shepard approach "Is there something you want to talk about?"

"I'm curious Garrus." Shepard stated "You told me before about your dad being in C-Sec and he was someone who played by the rules."

"My dad was someone who played by the rules because of what he had seen." Garrus stated "I didn't tell anyone this before but my dad was on Shanxi during the war."

Ashley had overheard them "Your dad fought on Shanxi?" she questioned "My granddad was the commander of the Garrison there."

Garrus looked at Ashley "My dad wasn't a commander; he was just a regular soldier obeying his order. He was under the command of Adrian Victus, one of the best commanders in the Turian Hierarchy, but even Victus was having second thoughts about this war. When he was deployed, he said that they were told that they were defending the galaxy from danger but it soon became clear that it was just a war of conquest and to show that the Turians were the strongest race. Shanxi never surrendered and we encountered strong resistance from the locals which would sometimes wipe out whole units, our weapons were almost useless against those massive walkers. So eventually, the overall Commander of the Turian Force, Desolas Arterius started to order the massacres of towns. When this order was issued some Turians began to mutiny, Adrian and my father included as this went against the rules of war."

Shepard caught something "Hold on, is this Desolas the brother of Saren, they share the same last name."

"Saren and Desolas were brothers" Garrus stated "After the Turians were defeated, Desolas ended up being killed during the battle and my father was captured along with many other Turians. It took a lot of negotiation from the Citadel to release the captured Turians. Some of them were having mental problems; my father included which is why he left the army and went into a life at C-sec. But as a result of seeing laws being broken in war, he was determined to obey the laws."

"That's quite a story Garrus." Shepard stated

"Thanks Commander." Garrus stated "Now I think you should speak with Liara, she may be going through a lot since her mother has just died."

"Good point." Shepard stated "I'll go and speak with her."

...

Shepard went up to the small office where Liara was using as her place of rest. Private Westmoreland had been standing watch in order to keep an eye on her but Shepard felt like that wasn't necessary. As she entered, she found Liara sitting at her desk with her head in her hands. When she saw Shepard enter, she stood up and looked at her "If you're here to talk about my mother's death then you don't need to." Liara stated "She brought it on herself."

Shepard sighed "You don't need to pretend that it doesn't bother you." She stated "She was still your mother."

Liara sat down "She was but then she was not. I prefer to remember my mother as what she used to be and not corrupted by Saren."

"The best of your mother still lives on within you." Shepard stated "Her determination, her intelligence, her strength..."

"And her love" Liara added "When I was a young girl I was often picked on because of my father."

"You seem to know a lot about your mother but not your father." Shepard stated

"My mother never talked about my father, only that my father was also an Asari." Liara stated "The Asari are mono-gendered, male and female have no terms. When Asari breed they only need to form a spiritual connection to become pregnant and it can be with any race and any gender. Other races do find that strange but it's how the Asari have lived for thousands of years. Before we helped form the Citadel, Asari would have bred among themselves but today, that is frowned on. I was called pureblood since both my parents were Asari and some Asari scientists today believe that it makes us unfertile. Anyway, I am happy that you came to talk to me but I'm fine. By the way, I am curious, what were your parents like?"

"Both my parents served in the Republic Navy." Shepard replied "My family have a history of serving in the navy and in fact, my family name goes back hundreds of year back when humanity was starting spaceflight. This was before we met the Chiss but one of my ancestors was Alan Shepard, the second person on Earth to travel in Space back in a time when humanity was divided. My mother is currently the XO on the Dreadnought Kilimanjaro, my father however is dead. He was the XO on the Cruiser Broadsword as part of the Second Fleet during the Verge Wars. But during the Battle of Sullust, the Broadsword got heavily damaged and my father was ejected into space when the Broadsword blew apart. Luckily he had his space suit on but he got exposed to the vacuum and he died from complications."

"Oh man." Liara sighed "I'm sorry about your father."

"It's hard to watch a family member die." Shepard stated "I had just graduated from the Academy and he was able to see me get my first assignment before he died, but it was still hard for us."

"Well it was nice to talk about our families." Liara stated "But you might want to prepare for your next mission because I think we're approaching our destination."

...

The Styx Theta Cluster was located very close to the galactic core and is considered a very dangerous cluster. The Republic only used this cluster to establish listening outposts to listen to the Citadel and make sure that they weren't planning an attack, the Republic was sure that the Citadel's spectres as well as the STG were listening to the Republic as well. The name of the cluster came from the ancient Greek tale of the River Styx which separated the world of the living and the world of the dead.

The Normandy arrived in the Erebus System which was home to four planets and an asteroid belt. The outermost planet was a hydrogen helium gas giant called Chofen that had a strong atmosphere that crushed most probes so investigation was limited. The next planet was Wermani, another gas giant and scans found an automatic repair drone in orbit which was brought on board and disassembled by Tali and Engineer Adams to find a small Prothean Data Disk. Then Quaji was next and this small terrestrial planet had a surface of silicone with deposits of uranium and other heavy metals.

But it was the closest planet to the sun that was the one that had the listening post. The planet Nepmos was a resource rich world that was full of mineral that would have been a good mining world but there were a number of problems, the crust was very thin and unstable and only 8 kilometres deep at any location which caused frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions and since the Styx Theta Cluster was close to the Galactic core, the area was too dangerous to travel which was why there was a listening outpost as no one would think it was here.

As the Normandy approached Nepmos, Doka contacted Shepard "Commander, we're got a transmission from Nepmos, I'm patching it through to you now."

"Mayday, mayday." The transmission said "This is Lieutenant Marie Durand, 3-14th Infantry, Republic 10th Frontier Division. We've been overrun by unidentified Alien life forms. We request immediate extraction."

Luke then contacted Shepard "Commander, I can't extract them until the area is safe, you'll have to use the Mako to clear the area before I can extract them with the shuttle."

"I'll take a team down there now." Shepard stated "Contact Ashley, Kaidan, Verbro and his team, I'll take them on this mission."

...

The Mako landed on Nempos and Pekue began to drive towards the site of the distress signal. On the way, they found a crashed probe with a league of One Medallion inside. Then as they carried on driving, Pekue stopped.

"Commander I'm picking up life form readings on the radar." She said

Then there were several dirt explosions as creatures emerged from the ground. Kaidan got onto the machine gun while Shepard used the cannon and they quickly took out the creatures. But Kaidan recognised them.

"Commander, those were Rachni just like we encountered on Noveria." He stated "How did they get here, Noveria has no contact with these systems?"

"I guess we'll find out when we reach the Listening outpost." Shepard stated "Carry on Pekue."

...

Pekue carried on driving towards the location of the distress signal and they found a group of about 5 soldiers facing off against a swarm of Rachni that were emerging from the ground. The fight was not going well for the marines but the appearance of Shepard and the Mako turned the tide as the Mako's cannon was able to blow the Rachni up. When the Rachni were defeat, Shepard and her team left the Mako and Shepard walked over to the Commanding officer.

"First Lieutenant Durand Ma'am." The leader greeted with a salute "Third Brigade, 14th infantry Regiment and we're damn glad to see you."

"Commander Shepard, captain of the RSV Normandy." Shepard greeted "Colonel Yularen stated that there was an attack here and sent us to investigate."

"Actually, we need to get out of here." Durand stated "We don't know what these creatures are but they started emerging from the ground here a few days ago. They overran the listening outpost and drove us here. We were making our last stand when you came. It's just us now, everyone else is dead. Just five out of 90 people."

"These creatures are known as the Rachni." Kaidan stated "But they're not suppose to be here, they were made extinct thousands of years ago and while we found some on Noveria from breeding, they still shouldn't have arrived here."

"I don't really care what they are but they're a danger to us." Durand stated "We need to get out of here."

"I can get a shuttle down but we need to make sure this area is safe." Shepard replied.

"We sent a probe and it seems there are more coming." Durand stated "If we take them out then it should be safe for your shuttle. This would have been easier if our cannons were activated but we lost power to them in the last attack."

Verbro looked at the Mako "Commander, if we hook the Mako to the grid it should give the automatic cannons enough energy to work again. It will shut the Mako down but it will give us more cannons."

Shepard agreed with that idea "Do it Verbro." She ordered and then Pekue drove the Mako close to the power grid and then Verbro hooked the Mako to the grid. The lights in the Mako shut down but the emergency lighting gave Pekue light and then lights on the automatic cannons lit up. Then Shepard and her team took cover behind the barricades as more Rachni emerged from the holes.

With the cannons activated, they blasted the Rachni as they emerged and any that survived were gunned down by Shepard's team. Corporal Sarah Westmoreland, one of Verbro's top men was an expert Sniper and she hide in a small tower and sniped the Rachni. More and more Rachni came but eventually, they stopped. After 10 minutes with no Rachni, it was deemed safe.

Durand sighed in relief "I can't believe we made it." She said "I thought we were going to die here. We've been fighting for almost 26 hours straight. It feels good to finally relax. The area should be safe for now."

Shepard contacted the Normandy "Joker, the area is clear, send Luke down in the Shuttle to pick up the survivors."

"Thank you for all your help ma'am" Durand replied "I owe you for this. But there is one last thing I should mention. The other listening Outpost in the Acheron System went offline three days ago. It may have some information about where these creatures came from. I don't know if it's a coincidence but you should probably go and check it out."

"I will." Shepard stated "As soon as we're done here we'll go check the outpost. I don't know why the Rachni are loose out here but I'm going to find out."

Then one of Durand's men came over "Ma'am, we're getting a signal from one of our ground-scan UAVs. There's a big hollow space about 500 meters under the surface."

"Right, that must be where these creatures are coming from." Durand stated "But my people are in no position for a ground clearing operation."

"I'll send word to Commander Yularen on the Normandy." Shepard stated "The Republic will send someone to investigate this."

...

A while later, Luke arrived on the Shuttle and Durand and her troops entered and were taken back to the Normandy. Shepard and her team were picked up by the Normandy after they returned to the Mako. Gunnery Officer Zitt wanted to use the Normandy's cannons to fire on Nempos to wipe out the Rachni but that would have been a waste since the Rachni were underground. So Shepard decided to investigate the other listening Outpost to try and get answers and Joker plotted a course for the Acheron System.

...

As the Normandy was heading down to the Acheron System, Shepard went towards the barracks and saw the Krogan Mercenary Wrex chatting with Verbro and his team. As Shepard approached, Wrex looked at her "Shepard, I was just speaking to your army man here about what just happened, is it true you fought the Rachni on Noveria."

"We did." Shepard replied "On Noveria they found an old Rachni Queen egg and were using it to create their own army."

"Science like that is dangerous." Wrex replied "I may not be a scientist but even I know the dangers of the Rachni. Hell, if it wasn't for the Krogan then the Citadel would have been destroyed thousands of years ago during the Rachni Wars."

Campbell looked at Wrex "I've heard of these Rachni Wars but I don't know much about them."

Wrex looked at her "I can't tell you much because I wasn't around at that time. But basically a Salarian patrol found the Rachni homeworld and the Rachni soon began to speak across the galaxy destroying Citadel colonies. At the time it the Citadel didn't have a massive fleet since the Turians hadn't been found yet. It was only when the Salarians found my people were we able to turn the tide against the Rachni."

"But didn't the Salarians uplifting you destroy your home?" Westmoreland asked

Wrex shook his head "No, the Krogan destroyed our home planet long before the Salarians uplifted us. After we destroyed the Rachni we were given new planets to settle on. But to some Krogan, it wasn't enough, we bred too quickly and Krogans loved to fight so eventually the Krogan Rebellions began. We smash Citadel forces even when the Turians got involved, it was only when the Genophage was unleashed that the we were forced to give us."

"What is this Genophage?" Shepard asked

"The Genophage was a type of disease that attacks the fertility of Krogan." Wrex replied "It makes only 1 in 1000 births successful so Krogan can't breed too often. No one has cured it because the Krogan prefer fighting to science but even I admit that my species is dying. If we have a major war then the Krogan may die off but the Citadel wouldn't care, that was why the Genophage was creates as it would prevent us from launching another war."

"So what happened to the Krogan after the War?" Verbro asked

"After the Rebellions, we lost all right to having our own army and fleet which is why the Krogan work alone as mercenaries." Wrex replied "No Krogan clan has been able to unite the Krogan into one group. I actually tried that once. I was the leader of a small tribe trying to restore order but the other Krogan tribes were against us. These tribes followed a Krogan called Jarrod, he was one of the few Warlords left from the Krogan Rebellions, he was old and so were his ideas. He wanted to continue the war; fight the Turians, the Salarians, each other. It didn't matter who as long as we were fighting."

"And what did you want?" Shepard asked

"I just wanted Jarrod to shut up and so did many other Krogan." Wrex replied "Many saw war with the Citadel as a fools errand since we wouldn't be able to replenish our numbers. I told them to forget about war and focus on breeding and for a while it was working, we were increasing our numbers and some of the tribes were coming around and started listening to me."

"And I take it that this Jarrod didn't like that?" Shepard questioned

"No he didn't." Wrex stated "And then he did something totally unexpected, he arranged a Crush with the tribes, a meeting on neutral grounds, he wanted to talk. So we met at the Hollows, near the graves of our ancestors, it was to remind us of where we came from. This was the once place where violence was forbidden and none of us were expecting any violence. We thought Jarrod would respect our traditions but it seemed he didn't"

Shepard looked at Wrex "That sound like a trap to me, you should have seen it coming"

"I did." Wrex stated "But when your father invites you to a crush, you have to go."

"Wait, Jarrod was your father?" Campbell gasped

"He was until that day." Wrex replied "We talked but we didn't go anywhere and when it was clear that I wouldn't join Jarrod, he gave the signal. Then many of his men burst from the graves and attacked us. Jarrod broke our most sacred laws and the few that were loyal to me were killed. I was able to escape but not before I buried my dagger deep into my father's heart. That was why I left my homeworld and I've never been back since."

"That was quite a story Wrex." Shepard stated

"I guess it is." Wrex stated "And you know, it feels good to finally talk about it."

"I should go now." Shepard stated and looked at Verbro "And you better get ready for our mission."

"Aye Commander." Verbro stated and he left with Campbell and Westmoreland to prepare for their mission.

...

The Normandy soon arrived in the Acheron System, just like the Erebus System, the names of the planets come from Ancient Greek Mythology from the underworld. The first planet Farthori was a modest terrestrial planet with an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and chlorine. The crust was made of sulphur with a few deposits of nickel and had a very rough terrain made up of craggy overlapping craters which date to the formation of the planet. This planet was also tidally locked to the sun and the day side of Farthori has never been mapped.

The small planet of Grosalgen was a tiny ice planet made of frozen water and chlorine with an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and ethane while the planet of Imaneya was a large terrestrial world composed of water ice and an atmosphere of nitrogen and carbon monoxide. There was also an asteroid belt where scans picked up a signs from a battle in the belt and a scans found wreck ships left over from the Turian Unification wars with marks from the Epyrus Colony so at one point, the Turians had fought in this system before the Republic claimed this territory.

But it was the second planet from the sun, Altahe that was the planet of interest. Actually there are two planets, Altahe and Ontahe but they're what's known as a Roche world where two planets are locked together in orbit and share the same atmosphere. Altahe was where the Listening Outpost was located and soon the Mako was launched from the Normandy and landed on the planet.

Pekue drove the Normandy south from the landing site and not far from where the listening outpost was, they found a crashed satellite and Shepard found the writings of the Asari Matriarch Dilinaga stored in the payload. After removing the writings, they carried on until they reached the Listening Outpost where the Rachni had nested outside so this outpost was invested as well. The crew quickly took out the Rachni with the Mako before they went inside the Outpost.

Inside the Outpost was carnage. The whole base looked like it had been ransacked, supply crates were smashed, computers were destroyed and bodies had been torn apart. The crew of the Outpost were dead as there were no people who were still alive. Shepard and the team quickly took out the Rachni, without the Queen to guide them, these Rachni had become feral but how had they got here in the first place. They soon found their answers in the supply room where Shepard found a terminal.

"Hey Commander." Ashley stated "Do you see this, this outpost received a supply run a few days ago, these Rachni work quick."

"Does it say where the supply ship came from?" Shepard asked "This base has a small crew and the Rachni are not suppose to be here. That ship must have brought them here and I guess it may be involved with the Rachni we found on Nempos."

"Hold on" Ashley stated "I just need to track the shipments, okay it seems the supply ship came from a station located in the Gorgon System of the Argos Rho."

"The Argos Rho?" Shepard question "Why would the supplies come from there, the Republic has no presence there as that region is useless to anyone."

"I guess we should go and find out." Kaidan stated

"We will" Shepard stated "I'll contact Colonel Yularen when we get back to the Normandy." Then they left the base and returned to the Normandy with more questions than answers.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: Another chapter complete and now I'll be covering a few side quests in the coming chapters before we move on to the Armstrong Nebula which will be classed as a main quest in this story which will be before Shepard and her team go to Feros. I would also like to address a review by Umbrella6661**

**First most of the star wars planets that are controlled by the Republic are in what the Mass Effect Universe calls the Earth Systems Alliance Space and parts of the Attican Traverse but all of the Traverse. The Zygerian Empire ruled around parts of the Attican Traverse as well but also held territory in what is known as the Terminus Systems. But not every Star Wars planet is located in the Republic, there are some located in the Terminus Systems and will make appearances in the Mass Effect 2 and 3 storylines. Some of the Star Wars planets that are located in the Terminus Systems include Yavin, Endor, Hoth, Tatooine, Lothal and Bespin. So the remote planets are located in the Terminus Systems**

**For the Criminal Organisations, they will be making appearances in the Mass Effect 2 storyline but I still haven't fully planned how to bring them into the story, only the Hutt Cartel is planned since they will have their own territory in the Terminus Systems.**

**For the question about Han Solo, I do plan to bring him in but he may not play a major role until Mass Effect 3's storyline. I do have an idea on how to bring him and Leia together but I don't want to say it yet.**

**I hope that answers these questions but I have not fully planned out future instalments in this series. It may not even be 3 stories because I plan to have a shorter story focusing on the events between Mass Effect's 2 and 3. Also the storyline's of those Games will be different as Cerberus will be slightly different in this story but I don't want to say how yet otherwise I will spoil the story.**


	16. Argos Rho:

**Argos Rho:**

As the Normandy headed towards the Argos Rho, Shepard had some time with the crew and decided to talk with Kaidan. Of all the crew members, Shepard had known Kaidan the longest and she was always curious about the backgrounds of her crew so she went to see Kaidan who greeted her when he saw her "Hey Commander, how are you going?" he asked

"I'm fine Kaidan." Shepard replied "I had some time to pass so I thought I should get to know you better since we're been on this mission since the start but I don't actually know much about you."

"Well my life has not been easy." Kaidan stated "I was born into a military family just like you were. My father served in the Republic army so he was proud when I joined. But I also developed force sensitive powers at a young age and so I spent quite a lot of my younger years at the Jedi Temple."

The Jedi temple was located on Arcturus Station and was the headquarters of the Jedi Order, the Republic's biotic community. Because of accidents with Element Zero, it caused people to develop special powers that were known as Force powers. The power of this force was better understood when the creature known as Yoda was discovered and the Republic created the Jedi Order so that these force sensitive's had a place to learn. Not every force sensitive had to join but if you had strong force powers then it was advised as you may lose control of your powers by accident. The Jedi Order members were trained in different ways, some become scholars who seek knowledge while others became soldiers who could use their powers on the battlefield or stealth missions just like the Asari Commandos.

"What was it like in the Temple?" Shepard asked

"They had a strike routine." Kaidan replied "It was like being in military school and you had to train all the time to the best. There were many other people just like me at the Temple. I became skilled with both the force and a lightsaber by the time I reached 16."

The lightsaber was a Jedi's special weapon, it was an energy sword that was powered by a special crystal known as a Kyber crystal that were found on the Planet Ilum. Jedi younglings would find these crystals as part of a training test before constructing their lightsabers. Depending on your powers, the lightsabers could be different colours such as green, yellow and blue. A few powerful Jedi even had a rare purple lightsaber. These lightsabers could cut through pretty much anything and deflect blaster bolt from blasters.

But this caught Shepard attention, Kaidan never fought with a lightsaber, he always fought with a pistol "Why don't you fight with a lightsaber?" she questioned "I've never seen you fight with a lightsaber at any point."

Kaidan sighed "Well, I don't have my lightsaber anymore." He stated "I was stripped of it?"

"Why were you stripped of your lightsaber?" Shepard asked

"Because I got kicked out of the Jedi order!" Kaidan pretty much shouted which made Shepard step back in shock and then sighed "I'm sorry Shepard, I don't really want to talk about it but I made a mistake many years ago that got me expelled from the Jedi Order. I was out of work for a while until I met this former Asari Commando who helped train me in combat and then I was able to join the military with help from my father. Maybe one day I will tell you about the incident that got me expelled."

"Thanks for telling me that Kaidan." Shepard stated "And no matter what you did, you are still a member of my crew."

"Thanks Shepard." Kaidan replied.

...

The Argos Rho cluster was a cluster of three systems that tended to be ignored by the galactic powers as there were no habitual planets and so no colonies that could be developed so it was a haven for criminal activity. The systems in this cluster were named after mythical creatures from Greek Mythology, the Gorgon, the Phoenix and Hydra System. The system that the Normandy was going was the Gorgon system as that system was where the data said the Rachni came from.

The Star Gorgon was a B-type Star and had 5 planets in the system. Two of the planets, Wuo and Camaron were tidally locked to Gorgon which made one side of these planets scorched and the other side frozen and the other three planets, Vectra, Slekon and Sharblu are all gas giants so there were no suitable planets for colonies which made the Gorgon system a great place to set up a secret base. The Gorgon system was home to an unidentified space station known as Depot Sigma-23 which was where the supply ship had come from that the Rachni may have been onboard.

Shepard arranged her team which included Ashley, Wrex, Liara, Tali and Bakira and they headed down to the cargo bay where Luke took them from the Normandy to the base using the Shuttle. They landed in the hanger of the base but the whole base was deserted and looked like it had been for some time. Just as Shepard feared, there were Rachni infesting the base and as soon as the door to the shuttle opened, Wrex and Ashley blasted the Rachni and then they all disembarked.

"Luke, wait here, we'll radio when we get back." Shepard said to Luke as she left the Shuttle.

"Yes Commander." Luke replied

Shepard and her team switched their torches on as the base was completely dark and it seemed that the power was out. There was also Rachni in the base and there were a few nests. Shepard decided that the best thing to do was to blow the base after they collected evidence and so Bakira found some old explosives in a storage room which had once been the armour and rigged them to explode. She did not set the charge yet as she needed to wait until they gathered any data to give to Colonel Yularen when they got back to Arcturus Station. Bakira also found a fuel supply and rigged that to explode to ensure that the base was destroyed.

Eventually Shepard's team found the main commander's quarters where a deactivated protocol droid was in the corner. With help from Tali, the droid was reactivated but was still damaged "I am the Personal data recorder for Major Elena Flores." The droid stated but nothing else.

Major Flores must have been the base commander for this station but the Republic had no bases in the Argos Rho so who did Flores work for? "Shepard" Tali stated "I can find three data entries in this droid's data banks." Tali stated

"Play the first entry Tali." Shepard ordered and Tali used her engineering skills to activated the recording from the droid's data banks

"Sigma-23 is almost fully operational. The barracks and storage lockers are complete and we've begun stocking the munitions. It's highly unlikely that the Republic will patrol in the Nebula. I suspect that our only risk will be from pirates and who will believe them. It looks like we'll have space for two reinforced platoons of Cerberus commandos."

"This base was not set up by the Republic." Ashley stated "But who is this Cerberus that is mentioned?"

"And what of the Rachni?" Wrex questioned

"I guess another entry will explain" Shepard stated "Play the second entry Tali."

After Tali activated the droid, the recording continued "The package arrived today for field testing. I'm told that they're fundamentally similar to the units being developed on Noveria. They promised that this batch will be stable. Something about them developing in proximity to the master control unit. We've detected some pirates setting up anchorage in a neighbouring system. I think we'll try deploying them there first."

"They must have been trying to weaponize the Rachni." Bakira stated "I guess it didn't work in the end."

"Play the final entry Tali." Shepard ordered "I need to see what happened."

Tali activated the last entry "They've escaped from captivity. Clever bastards, we treated them like animals, we should have treated them like P.O.W.s. They're spreading, boarding the supply ships and sending them to random destinations. They'll be all over the cluster in a week. General Pryde, if you recover this message, my advice is screw the Rachni. They're too smart, use one of the other projects. Flores signing off for the final time."

"Man that's another batch of experimental Rachni that have gotten loose." Ashley stated

"We have what we need." Shepard stated "Tali, take the droid with is, I'll have Chos look at it latter. Head back to the shuttle, once we're off, Bakira will set the charges."

They all went back to the shuttle carrying the deactivated protocol droid. After Luke took off in the shuttle and took them back to the Normandy, Bakira activated the explosives and they watched as the base exploded into scrap.

...

As Shepard arrived back on the Normandy, Doka contacted her "Commander you better come to the communication room" she called "I've got a message coming in which you should hear

"I'm on my way." Shepard stated and eventually made her way into the Communication room where Doka was waiting for her "So what's this message."

"I'm playing it over to you now." Doka stated and she activated the communications array where a message played.

Most of the message was static so it was hard to hear what was being said '... general distress call... Sacred Angel medical transport... critical system failure... losing power... emergency landing... –gos Rho... repeat Argos. Communications failing... life support... emergency transponder... won't last... please hurry."

"Where is this message coming from?" Shepard asked

A nearby Astro Droid which was used to track the messages beeped and Doka who understood what the droids said was able to translate "The message came from the Planet Metgos in the Hydra System which is not far from hear."

Shepard knew what they were doing next, she radioed Joker to set a course to the Hydra System and Shepard went to prepare her new team since it wouldn't take them long to arrive.

...

The Hydra system was named after the mythical hydra, a seven headed serpent in Ancient Greek mythology and this system have 5 planets but they were all uninhabited since there were no suitable planets for colonies. The first planet was Varmalus, a scorching hot planet with a thick atmosphere of nitrogen and helium. The planet was home to life as under the surface were underground tunnels where primitive life forms have developed but was unsuitable for a Republic colony.

The planets Theyar and Syba were both gas giants and Theyar had large storms as the planet had been hit by an 12 kilometer asteroid at some point. The planet Canrum had been the site of a major battle of the Krogan Rebellions as the female Krogan Warlord Shiagur had been defeated by Turian peacekeepers while fighting until the end with her band of warriors which while small had many strong Krogan which put up a major fight and even when the fighting was over, Krogan admires swore blood oaths against the Turians involved and thousands of Turians who were involved in the fight were in killed in the following years. Items from the battle remained as scans found a highly radioactive item in orbit and after Engineer Adams did a full scan, a warhead with the markings from the Turian Parthia Colony was found. It was left alone due to how dangerous it was.

But it was the planet Metgos that was the one that Shepard had come to the Hydra system as this was where the distress signal was coming from. Pekue got the Mako ready and as she had no idea what was going on, Shepard took Wrex, Liara, Tali and Ashley with her on this mission.

...

The planet Metgos had a level 2 heat hazard so it west best that no one went outside. The extreme of the planet would kill them within minutes even with the space suits on so Shepard wanted this mission done quick and thanks to Tali, they were able to track where the distress signal was coming from. Shepard hoped that the life support was still active otherwise there was no chance for anyone to be rescued even if they survived the crash.

Pekue drove the Mako towards where Tali had recognised where the signal was coming from but on the way, they came across some old wreckage which the quickly investigated. It was not wreckage from the ship as they saw markings from the Turian Gothis colony so this may have been from the battle that killed the Krogan Warlord. After examining the wreckage, Pekue drove towards the site where the distress signal was coming from.

After driving further, they eventually saw the wreckage of the crashed ship "There's the wreckage Shepard." Ashley pointed out "It seems to be a medical frigate."

The crashed ship was one of a EF76 Nebulon-B escort Frigate. The wreck lay against a rocky hillside with the bottom of the front section crushed from impact. The wreck also looked like it had seen battle as there were signs of a battle along the hull as sections of the ship had been blown off.

"Careful, I have a bad feeling about this." Wrex stated

"As do I." Liara added "This ship was clearly attacked, this cannot have been from a malfunction."

"The question is who attacked?" Ashley stated

Shepard looked at Pekue "Take us closer Pekue." Shepard stated "But stay alert, Ashley get into the turret in case we get any company."

Pekue drove the Mako closer to the wreck and they tried to see if there were any survivors. But so far there was nothing, parts of the wreck were on fire and Tali couldn't get any messages over the radio. But they soon spotted something "Shepard, I can see an escape pod nearby." Tali stated

"Take us closer to the pod." Shepard ordered "I'm going out there with Wrex and Liara."

"Be careful Shepard." Ashley warned.

"I will." Shepard replied and as they got close, Shepard, Wrex and Liara left the Mako dressed in breathing equipment and went closer to the pod. But when they saw through the front of the pod, they saw that the pod had been blasted open and the crew were dead inside.

Then a shot struck the pod and the three of them looked around to see a Geth Sniper standing on a hill "Geth, it's a trap!" Wrex yelled and as the Geth prepared to fire, Ashley fired the Mako's cannon which struck the Geth and destroyed him. More Geth arrived included a few Geth Armatures. Liara, Shepard and Wrex ran back to the Maki with Wrex and Shepard managing to destroy several Geth rocket troopers with their machine guns.

As they boarded the Mako, Ashley fired the cannon and destroyed one of the Armatures while Shepard used the machine gun to destroy several rocket drones. The Mako took a few hits from rockets but the shields held strong and allowed the Mako to destroy all of the Geth.

When the last Geth unit was destroyed, the crew breathed a sigh of relief "Well I guess the Geth are the reason this ship was destroyed." Ashley stated

"They attacked the ship then killed any survivors." Tali stated "The whole crew of the ship are dead."

"I'll report this loss back to Yularen." Shepard stated "Now let's get to the Normandy."

...

As soon as the Mako was picked up, Shepard began to leave the Mako but Wrex tapped her on the shoulder "Shepard, can I have a word?"

"Sure thing Wrex." Shepard stated and Wrex led her to where he would normally stay "What is it?"

"I was talking to some of your crew and they mention something about the Mandalorian Wars, what are they about."

Shepard had heard about this war, it was the last Republic War before First Contact with the Turians "The Mandalorians were a warrior like people who lived in the Mandalore System. They're not actually natives, there people who established their own civilization in the system and they became a warrior culture. In fact they're just like the Krogan, they love going to war not for riches or power but for the thrill of the fight."

"I guess the Krogan and the Mandalorians do have something in common." Wrex stated

"The Mandalorians were valued warriors who played big roles for the Republic, but when they weren't fighting enemies of the Republic, they were fighting each other. Have you heard of Death Watch?"

"Yeah I've heard of them." Wrex stated "One of the Terminus Systems power crime factions, they fight for the thrill."

"They were once a group of Mandalorians who decided that the Republic didn't mean anything so about 50 years ago, they attacked another Republic colony. Then they staged a coup on Mandalore and took over the colony. Other colonies in the Mandalore system joined in and eventually the Republic sent a task force to occupy which resulted in Death Watch fleeing. Mandalore came under Republic military occupation until the Citadel discovery. Fear of war between the Republic and Citadel made the Senate believe the Mandalorians were needed in the event of a war."

"I can see the value of having skilled warriors like them." Wrex stated "I've fought Death Watch before and they were some of the toughest people I've faced. But I didn't just want to speak of history, I've been thinking about family. I told you about how I killed my father but I made a promise to his father that I would recover his Battle Armour, it was taken from him after the Krogan Rebellions."

"What's so important about this armour?" Shepard asked

"In truth it's useless to what we have now." Wrex stated "But it's a relic, worn by generations of my family, it's rightfully mine. After the rebellions the Krogan weren't allowed armour or weapons after the war so the armour was held by the Turian military. But now it's in the hand of a Turian scumbag called Tonn Actus. He was actually a Terminus criminal whose made millions by selling Krogan relics that rightfully belong to us."

"Wait, wasn't Tonn Actus one of the Turian warlords involved in the Skyllian Blitz?" Shepard questioned

"He was." Wrex stated "And he's got several bases where he stores his goods but I know where he has my battle armour and I've heard a report that he's there. The base is located here in the Argos Rho in the Phoenix System. I ask that I get the chance to recover my armour."

"We're not far from there now." Shepard stated "Besides Tonn Actus is a criminal the Republic have been hunting for years. We'll kill two birds with one stone. Recover your armour and take out Actus."

"Thanks Shepard." Wrex stated.

...

The Phoenix System was not far from the Hydra System so it didn't take long for the Normandy to arrive. Unlike the Gorgon and Hydra Systems, the Phoenix System actually had a base known as Principle Station, a space station built out of an old Asteroid and had been a command centre during the Krogan Rebellions and was now a high military training base for the Citadel Spectres and the simulations allowed Spectres to train in different hazardous situations and had a population of 1200.

Also in the Asteroid belt, scans found a weak signal coming from a carbonaceous asteroid which Tali recognised as Quarian and she led a small team which found an abandoned freighter. She did not know why it was here but she recovered a Prothean Data Disk on board.

The Phoenix System had five planets, the first of which was called Patashi, a sun blasted terrestrial world whose atmosphere had been blasted away by the Phoenix star leaving the planet tidally locked to the star and had molten metal covering the side facing the sun. The second planet was Sylsalto a standard hydrogen-helium gas giant with no features worth mentioning. Then there was Intai'sei, an earth like planet that was one of the few planets suitable for colonisation but high temperatures and an arid climate made agriculture hard. Several Republic cities were founded but the majority of the colony's population of 150,000 people were scattered across the planet's deserts operating wind farms and research stations as several fossils left over from the Rachni Wars had been found. The Republic had to make a special agreement for this colony since the system was home to a Citadel owned station but because the station is only used for training, the Republic control the system but the colony is still not large enough to have a seat on the Senate. The planet Vebinok was a small terrestrial world with an atmosphere of xenon and krypton. This planet also had a story where a Turian cargo ship carrying bulk gas was attacked by pirates and made a rough landing on Vebinok which melted some of the ice on the planet and ruptured the shipping containers spilt LOX across the surface.

But the planet that Wrex had stated his armour and Actus were on was the fourth planet in the system, Tuntau, an enormous low density terrestrial planet with a thick atmosphere of methane and helium and a crust of sodium and silicon dioxide. While not a habitable planet, this planet was used by pirates as a staging ground and several times, the Republic had attacked the pirate based to protect their colony on Intai'sei.

Shepard took Bau, Wrex, Tali and Liara on this mission and the Mako quickly landed on the surface of Tuntau. As the Mako landed, Shepard saw a pyramid in the distance and Pekue drove towards that first. Shepard investigated an Asari body and found the writings of Matriarch Dilinaga on her. This Asari must have found them in the nearby ruins. After that, Pekue drove south to where the radar showed the base was. As soon as they arrived, the base looked empty as there were no guards but this was a warehouse, not a pirate base to plan raids.

Shepard and her team entered the base and Wrex stated "This is the place, my armour is here somewhere."

"Let's find your armour and take out Actus." Shepard stated and Shepard carefully opened the next door while Bau knelt down with his sniper rifle to get a look. He too knew about Actus and he knew what he looked like. So he got a look through the door to try and find him.

"Actus is here Shepard." Bau stated "I see him on the upper walkway talking with someone who I believe is his second in command. I have a clear shot on him, do you want me to take it?"

"Do it Bau." Shepard stated "But the head off the snake." Bau fired and shot Actus in the head killing him instantly. The shot and death of their leader threw the pirates into chaos and then Liara used her biotics to start throwing crates at them while Shepard and Wrex charged in with their guns firing. The suddenness of the attack meant the fight was over quickly and soon all of the pirates were dead.

With the pirates dead, Shepard and her team entered the upper office which was Actus' office and Tali hacked the terminal to find data that Actus had which showed that he was planning a few raids so Shepard had this data downloaded so she could warn colonies of incoming attacks. There was also some valuable pieces of armour and weapons which they took as it would help them in their mission. Wrex managed to find a powerful M-300 Claymore Shotgun, a powerful shotgun that was often used by Krogan warlords so Wrex took it. But it was the main safe that had the armour. Tali found a database on one of the terminals which listed what was in the office and the armour was in process of being sold to a wealthy collector.

"Well, that collector won't be getting the armour now." Wrex stated once Tali showed him the data. The safe was locked tight but since Tali was good at hacking, she was able to open the safe quickly revealing Wrex's family armour. "This is it." Wrex stated as he pulled out his armour which to be honest was not as strong as the armour Wrex wore now "I can't believe my ancestors ever wore this piece of crap. But I'm glad I have it back now."

"I'm glad we could help you get it back Wrex." Shepard stated

Wrex smiled "You know, I'm glad I came along with you Shepard, I haven't done a mission like this for a long time."

"We should go now" Shepard stated "I feel like it's time to head back to Arcturus Station. I need to report to Yularen and get further orders in hunting down Saren."

Shepard and her team head back to the Mako and radioed Joker to pick them up.

...

Once back on the Normandy, Shepard came into the bridge "Where to now Commander?" Joker asked

"It's time to head back to Arcturus." Shepard stated "We need to inform Colonel Yularen and get further information about Saren."

"Understood Commander." Joker stated "Plotting a course to Arcturus." Soon the Normandy was on its way through hyperspace to Arcturus Station.

**Chapter end:**

**Notes: Well another chapter is complete and I have done the entire Argos Rho cluster in this chapter. I did a few changes and included more Star Wars in this chapter by having the wrecked ship as in Mass Effect, you only found the crashed pod before the ambush and instead of a terminal to get the information, I used a deactivated droid in order to bring more Star Wars into the story. I also brought in my version of Kaidan's back-story which I plan to reveal more in a personal quest for Kaidan in a latter chapter, that might replace one of the normal missions in Mass Effect which I don't think will fit with the story. I did have a few people saying that there was not enough Star wars in this story but you will be seeing more Star Wars in future stories in this series. Next chapter will actually focus on a personal mission for my created character Bakira, the Batarian explosives expert.**


	17. Cerberus and an Old Enemy

**Cerberus and an old Enemy:**

The Normandy exited Lightspeed in the Arcturus System outside Arcturus Station so Shepard could report to Colonel Yularen about what they found on Noveria and see if he had any more information that could help them in the Hunt for Saren.

"Arcturus Control, this if RSV Normandy requesting a landing dock." Joker called over the comm.

After a few seconds, a voice replied "Copy Normandy, you are cleared to dock."

Shepard was on the bridge with Joker and Luke "Keep most of the crew here." She stated "I'm just going to speak with Colonel Yularen and try and get some information from him. I shouldn't be here for long."

"As you say Commander." Luke stated "Hopefully Colonel Yularen will have something that will help find Saren."

...

A short while later, Shepard arrived at the Republic Security Bureau building and took the elevator to the top floor which was where Colonel Yularen's office was. But when she arrived, she found Colonel Yularen was currently in a meeting with a man that Shepard recognised as Governor Wilhuff Tarkin.

"They would not dare show themselves again." Tarkin said to Yularen "They were supposed to have been wiped out long ago."

"My agents have reported that these fanatics have begun to unite under a leader but we do not know his name." Yularen stated "They're a small threat now but it's better to deal with them when they're a small threat."

"I agree." Tarkin stated "The Republic has always been able to survive because we are united. Humanity alone cannot rule the galaxy; no species is strong enough to do that."

"Even so it does not stop being who desire that." Yularen stated and then looked behind Tarkin "Ah Commander Shepard, I see you have arrived."

"I apologize." Shepard stated "I did not know you two were meeting, I can come back later."

"No need Commander." Tarkin stated "We were just about done and you might want to hear about this."

"Have a seat Commander." Yularen stated and Shepard sat down "Do you know what we were speaking about?"

"Not really Colonel." Shepard admitted

"Well here's a question for you, have you heard of a group known as Cerberus?" Yularen asked

Shepard remembered that name, this Cerberus group have been involved in the destruction of the listening outposts "This Cerberus group are involved in something. Our listening outposts in the Styx Theta were attacked by Rachni that were bred by this Cerberus group in a base in the Argos Rho. We downloaded the data from the droid we found so you can work on it. We destroyed the base afterwards. But other than that, I don't really know what Cerberus is"

Yularen looked at Shepard "The simplest version of Cerberus is that they are a Pro Human movement. As you know, some people in the Republic view that Humans are the most supreme species in the Republic and it is our right to rule the galaxy. They believe that we should conquer the whole galaxy and rule it."

"The idea is madness." Tarkin stated "I may not be the fondest of non-human species I admit, but our Republic has managed to stay together and even we cannot rule the whole galaxy, it's too big. I don't like the Citadel but I have no desire to conquer. Cerberus likes to fund anti-Citadel human senators and they may have agents in the Senate, but I don't know who."

"The data I recovered did mention a General Pryde." Shepard stated "Does that name sound familiar?"

"It does." Yularen stated "Pryde was a leading Admiral in the Republic during the Verge War, he was a well disciplined and no nonsense man but he was also very pro-human and saw the other species as lesser races and didn't like having them in higher ranks in the military. It was only because he was a successful Admiral that he was never demoted but during the Verge War he bombarded a Batarian Colony killing thousands of civilians and disobeyed orders. The Citadel was furious and the Senate stripped him of his position but he fled before he could be arrested. I guess he must be a leading member of this Cerberus."

"I know this isn't involved with your Hunt for Saren but we need to try and get some information on Cerberus before they become a major threat." Tarkin stated

"Governor Tarkin is right." Yularen stated "RSB have been investigating Cerberus for some time. But do you remember Rear Admiral Kohoku?"

Shepard knew who Kohoku was, he was the Admiral whose Marines Shepard had found dead on the planet Edolus where they had been lured by a beacon and killed by a Thresher Maw "I helped Kohoku located some of his marines who went missing but they were dead when I found them." She replied

Yularen nodded "Kohoku tried to find out what happened to his marines and he got some information that this Cerberus group but he's gone missing."

"Missing?" Shepard questioned "People like Admiral Kohoku don't go missing for any reason."

"We believe Cerberus may be involved in this." Tarkin stated "Before he vanished Kohoku was following a lead on Cerberus in the Yangtze System."

"Then I'll head there right away." Shepard stated "Kohoku may be in danger." Then her comm beeped and after looking at Yularen who nodded, she answered the call.

"Commander, we need you back here at the Normandy." Joker called

"Joker, what's going on?" Shepard asked

"We've had an intruder on the Normandy and we need you here to sort things out." Joker replied

"Alright Joker, I was finished here anyway." Shepard replied and ended the call and looked at Yularen and Tarkin "My apologizes but something is going on at the Normandy, there's been an intruder."

"You best head back there right away." Yularen stated "We can't have someone steal our prototype technology." Shepard nodded in agreement and left the office.

...

As Shepard returned to the Normandy, he found Verbro waiting for her "Commander." He saluted "It's good to see you here?"

"So what happened?" Shepard questioned

"Supply Officer Zeplatuz and his assistance Dik were loading supplies when one started shaking. Dik was busy loading supplies so Zeplatuz investigated when a Batarian broke out." Verbro stated "He then started demanding to know where our new Batarian friend Bakira was."

"This Batarian was looking for Bakira?" Shepard gasped wondering what was going on "What happened next?"

Zeplatuz refused to answer and he was shot, thankfully not fatally, Dr Chakwas says he will recover soon." Verbro stated

"So where is this Batarian now?" Shepard asked

Verbro sighed "I'm afraid he's dead. Dik returned and grabbed him. This Batarian wasn't some common slaver or pirate, this guy was an expert, he put up a strong fight against Dik but eventually after Dik was shot in the arm, he lost control and pretty much crushed the Batarian's head."

"Damn it!" Shepard groaned "Now we won't know what's going on and why he was after Bakira?"

"We recovered his Omi-tool." Verbro stated "But the data is encrypted in a form that we don't know."

Shepard looked at the Omi-tool and saw that the data was encrypted "I'll go speak to Bakira." She stated "She might have an idea. In the meantime, prepare the crew, we're going on a rescue missing, Rear Admiral Kohoku has gone missing in the Yangtze System."

"I'll prep the team for the mission." Verbro stated "You better go and speak with Dik and Zeplatuz as well." Shepard agreed and she left while Joker had the Normandy leave Arcturus System and plotted a course for the Yangtze system.

...

Shepard entered the Medical clinic where Dr Karin Chakwas was applying a bandage to the Wookie Dik's arm and Medical droid was nearby to give Chakwas help. Dik growled out something in Wookie to Chakwas.

"Yes I know." Chakwas stated "You were very brave and don't worry, Zeplatuz will be alright."

Supply officer Zeplatuz was lying on a bed with a bandage wrapped around his waist and the medical droid helped to keep his blood flowing.

Dik growled out again and Chakwas turned around "Ah, Commander, I see you decided to pay us a visit."

"I did" Shepard stated "How are they doing?"

"Dik and Zeplatuz will be fine. They both just need a good rest." Chakwas stated "Zeplatuz was more injured but thankfully we got to him in time. If this had gone on for too long then he would have bled to death. He's been put to sleep for now to help him relax but he should be fine but I've advised them to take it easy for a while."

"Agreed." Shepard stated and the Dik growled something in Wookie and thankfully, Shepard understood Wookie "I don't know what's that was about but it has something to do with our Batarian friend Bakira. Our intruder was looking for her, why I don't know but I'm going to find out."

Shepard soon came across Bakira who had now been given her own room. This had been done to keep her away from the rest of the crew as some may take their anger out on her so it was best if she was separate.

"Commander." Bakira stated "I heard about what happened with that intruder."

"And this intruder was looking for you." Shepard stated

"For me?" Bakira gasped "I can only know of one reason for something like this, my father is trying to find me."

"Your father?" Shepard questioned

"Yes." Bakira sighed "My family are high ranking members of the Hegemony's government. They fully support Slavery and in fact, one of my brothers is a well established Slaver. I'm sorry but I don't like talking about my family, I never had a good relationship with them, they were full supporters of the government and they believed that there was only use they had for me, form alliances."

"Alliances as in marriage I guess?" Shepard asked

"Indeed." Bakira stated "My father wanted me to marry this man from another powerful Batarian clan. I was totally against it but I went along but I never intended to make it for the marriage. The marriage was to take place on my soon to be husband's planet and during the journey there, I managed join a group of former Batarian soldiers who planned to defect, I left the ship and by the time my father realised, I was long gone."

Shepard pulled out the Omi tool recovered from the Batarian "This was recovered from our intruder." She stated "But the data is encrypted and none of us can translate it, not even the Astromech droids."

Bakira opened the data and looked through it "I recognise this encryption" she stated "It's an old form of the Batarian language, one that is not used very often even when we were still part of the Citadel. I can decrypt this but it will take time, Commander, when I decrypt this, I will tell you. We have to put an end to this otherwise someone else will try to find me."

"Don't worry Bakira." Shepard stated "You are just a part of this team as everyone else is."

"Thank you Shepard." Bakira stated.

...

The Voyager Cluster was on the outer reaches of the Milky Way but was still considered Republic territory but the military had little presence in the region which was probably a reason why this Cerberus group had sent up base here. There were three systems in the cluster and all of them were named after famous rivers from Earth.

The Yangtze system was named for the Yangtze River, the longest river in Asia and the third longest river on Earth. This system have five planets, the first of them Renshato was a large gas giant that some called a hot Jupiter due to having traces of sulphur in the atmosphere and had a powerful gravity well that kept many other planets far away and prevent any moons from orbiting. Other planets included Patajiri, a planet with a long cold night that caused chlorine in the atmosphere to fall to the surface as frost, Dregir, a barren rock with a weak magnetic field and Alrumter a small rocky terrestrial planet where a weak signal was detected and an old escape pod was recovered. Inside was a long dead a Turian with a few personal belongings and a Prothean Data disk, sadly the body couldn't be identified and so the crew gave the Turian a burial in space.

But on the planet Binthu scans found a secret base and this may be where Admiral Kohoku was found. Binthu had an atmosphere of carbon dioxide with a permanent haze of toxic chlorine and clouds of sulphur dioxide that dropped acid rain on the planet. This alone made the planet unsuitable for colonisation but it would be the last place anyone would think to set up a base so it made sense for Cerberus to set up a base.

Shepard needed to take a team and try and find Admiral Kohoku or see if there was any information that could lead to his whereabouts. Pekue prepared the Mako and Shepard selected her team but scans made by Pressly revealed that there were three bases on the planet but thankfully, they were all close to each other. Shepard decided that instead of attacking all three bases one at a time, they would hit all at once. Shepard would take Ashley, Kaidan and Garrus to one base, Bau would lead the second team which included Wrex, Tali and Liara to attack base 2 while Verbro would attack the third base. Shepard's team would attack the southern base which was located in some rocky hills so they would take the Mako with Pekue while Luke would take the shuttle and drop the other teams close to their bases but scans showed that all three bases had turrets so Luke would have to be careful.

The Mako landed close to the Cerberus Base furthest to the south and not far from the base, they found an old Prothean pyramid and Shepard found a stash of objects which included an old Prothean data disk. They then drove to the base where Shepard used the Mako's cannon to destroy the two turrets outside the base.

The turrets were all that were outside the base, there were no guards outside which may have been because of the atmosphere of the planet, even the space suits wouldn't last long because of the acid rain. So this mission would have to be done quickly so Shepard left the tank along with her team and entered the base.

The base wasn't that big, it consisted of only two large rooms connected by a small corridor. The first room was nearly empty but had a few storage containers. But the second room seemed to hold the experiments that were being done here. In the middle of the room was a Ray Shield Barrier which prevented anything from getting in or out and absorbed any shots that were fired at it. The room was filled with some Cerberus troops that wore full suits of white armour and full helmets that showed no skin. These troops were not common pirates, these men were well trained and they put up a massive fight. But eventually they were defeated.

With the men down, Kaidan deactivated the ray shield but as soon as the ray shield was down, an inhumane snarl was heard and Shepard saw several husks similar to the ones they had seen back on Eden Prime charge at them but Shepard quickly shot them with her assault rifle.

When the Husks were destroyed, Shepard saw a man lying on the floor and as she approached, she gasped as she recognised the man as Admiral Kohoku. He was alive but barely. "Admiral Kohoku?" Shepard gasped "Are you alright?"

Kohoku gasped and coughed up some blood "Com... Commander Shepard, you came?"

Shepard tried to help the Admiral up but he was too weak to even move "Admiral, Colonel Yularen said you were missing, we tracked you here."

Kohoku coughed again "Cerberus, they ambushed me and took me and some other captured troops here. They injected my troops with some kind of serum and I watched as my men turned into these things." He coughed again "Commander, you've got to stop them, these people are mad. They have another base in the Columbia System. The main information is there." He coughed again.

"Just hold on Admiral." Shepard stated "We'll get you back to the Normandy; you're going to be alright."

Admiral Kohoku coughed up blood and his head fell back "No Commander, I'm sorry, but I'm not going to make it. That stuff they injected me with, it's burning me. Just stop Cerberus... they... have to... be... stopped." He gasped the last bit out and then his head fell back. Shepard felt for a pulse but found none. Admiral Kohoku was dead.

Garrus sighed "I'm sorry Commander." He stated "I didn't know him well but he was a good man who cared about his men."

"Cerberus is going to pay for this!" Ashley hissed

"They will." Shepard stated "Ash, help me bring Kohoku's body back to the Normandy, we're take him back to Arcturus once we're done here." Ashley nodded and she and Shepard carried Kohoku's body back to the Mako and they were soon picked up by the Normandy.

...

After the Mako was picked up by the Normandy, Luke arrived bringing back the other teams and Sheppard gathered them in the meeting room. "My team managed to find Admiral Kohoku but he's dead. Cerberus injected him with some kind of serum which killed him. What did your teams find at your bases?"

"We found more of those Rachni soldiers." Bau stated "It seemed that Cerberus was breeding them to create an army."

"And my team found some kind of husks similar to those you found on Eden Prime." Verbro stated

"I'm still confused on them." Ashley stated "The Geth created those by impaling their victims on spikes, how were these created?"

"It may have something to do with this serum you mentioned." Liara suggested "It might be an experimental serum which isn't perfected yet."

"Regardless, we one more stop." Shepard stated "Before he died Kohoku said there was another Cerberus base in the Columbia System. That's where we're going. Later we'll contact Republic military and they'll secure these sites so they can no longer be used again. That's all for now, dismissed." They all left the room while Shepard called for Joker to set a course of the Columbia system.

...

Just like the other systems in the Voyager Cluster, the Columbia System was named after a famous river from Earth, this system being named after the Columbia River, the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. This system had four planets and two Asteroid belts. The first planet Clojiia was a hothouse terrestrial world with a dense atmosphere of nitrogen and sulphur dioxide and had a scorching hot surface made of iron and deposits of gold and had a large amount of volcanic activity, some the size of Australia. There was also Ontaheter, a large ice giant where a Prothean ship crashed before the collapse of their empire and some believe it could be recovered for research. Then there was Gromar, a rocky terrestrial planet that had once been home to a Turian telescope used to map the Terminus Systems but had long been abandoned. This may have also once been home to a Salarian secret base as scans picked up a derelict station and Verbro managed to recover a League of One Medallion.

But it was the second planet in the system, Nepheron that was the site of the Cerberus base. Nepheron was a barren, volcanic Terrestrial world with an atmosphere of carbon dioxide and krypton and had a surface of sodium and magnesium. Although the volcanic sites were spectacular, this world was of little interest to the Republic.

Shepard went back to the Mako along with Liara, Tali, Garrus, Bakira and Ashley and soon the Mako dropped from the Normandy and landed on Nepheron. As the Normandy headed towards the Mako, they found a dead body on the ground and when they checked the body out, it seemed to have once been a Cerberus soldier but he had a Salarian dog tag that once Captain Varsinth, one of the soldiers responsible for hunting the League of One. It is unknown how he got this relic.

"I wonder what killed him." Liara stated

They got their answer when they heard a loud roar and they saw a Thresher Maw nearby, thankfully it was far away from them to attack them and it was down in a large crater where it couldn't get them. Shepard decided to leave it alone and carry on with the mission.

They soon arrived at the base but unlike the bases on Binthu, this base had several Cerberus soldiers outside the base and so the Mako was used to take them out although there were some anti-tank soldiers outside so the Mako took rocket fire and did take a hit but the damage wasn't severe. Once the men outside were taken care of, Shepard and her team entered the base.

Just like the bases on Binthu, more of those white armour troops were in this base but there were also some black armoured troops who were even better trained than the white armoured. The fight here was much more intense and Shepard and her team had to take cover behind some boxes. Bakira threw grenades over the boxes and was able to take out some troops while Liara created a biotic barrier to protect them. The fight here was very intense but eventually, the Cerberus troops were dead and they went to find any information.

They found a stash of weapons in one room which were all high quality and only the best troops could afford these. Shepard found an M-76 Revenant Light Machine Gun machine gun which she picked up. Garrus picked up a modified widow anti-material rifle to replace his sniper rifle. They also found some heavy weapons M-490 Blackstorms, M-622 Avalanche, M-920 Cains and Arc Projectors as well as a large stash of high quality guns and explosives. Shepard wondered where Cerberus got all these weapons, someone very rich and powerful had to be funding Cerberus for them to afford to buy all these weapons. Shepard would have to report this to Yularen. Shepard had Garrus, Bakira and Liara load the weapons which they would take back to the Normandy while Shepard went with Tali and Ashley to check out the other room and here they found the main computer network.

"Alright Tali" Shepard stated "This is yours since you're the best hacker."

"I'll do my best Commander." Tali stated and activated the computer. She looked through some of the files but then an alarm sounded, it seemed that Cerberus was able to detect a hacker and they began to purge the files. But Tali was quick enough to download them before they were deleted. The files were encrypted but she was sure that RSB could use this information. With the job here done, they went back to the Normandy with the data and the weapons.

...

As soon as the Mako was back on the Normandy, Communication Officer Doka Phasa contacted Shepard "Commander, you better get to the communication's room, we've got an incoming transmission from Admiral Hackett."

Shepard knew Admiral Steven Hackett, he was the Admiral of the First Fleet and the Captain is the RSD Kilimanjaro, the flagship of the Fifth Fleet and he was the commanding officer of Shepard's mother so he was a very important person to Shepard, she had to know what Admiral Hackett wanted. "Alright Doka, I'll be right there." Shepard soon made her way into the communication's room while the now healed Dik helped Bakira take out the stash of weapons from the Mako.

Shepard arrived in the Communications room where the Togruta officer was waiting for her.

"Commander." Doka stated "Admiral Hackett contacted us while you were on the surface. He said that he had an urgent mission for us while we were in the Voyager Cluster. He asked that you contact him when you got back. I've contacted him now and he's replied."

"Alright Doka, put him through." Shepard stated and the hologram activated which showed a middle aged man with a stubble beard and thin greying hair. "Commander Shepard, I was informed that you were in the Voyager Cluster and something had come up from there which really worries Republic HQ."

"What's going on Admiral?" Shepard asked "Does it have something to do with the Geth?"

Hackett shook his head on the hologram "No, but it does have something to do with someone who you were involved with a long time ago during the Verge Wars, do you remember Elanos Haliat?"

Shepard remembered the name alright, this Elanos was involved in something big for both Shepard and the Republic during the Verge War "Elanos Haliat? You mean the mercenary leader who was responsible for planning the Skyllian Blitz with Batarian support?"

"The very man." Hackett replied, Elanos Haliat may have been a human pirate but he couldn't turn down an offer from the Batarians to sack the Republic's largest colony in Skyllian Verge. Once his involvement was discovered, Elanos disappeared and has been hunted for many years but he vanished. "Admiral Thrawn has reported that Elanos ambushed one of his ships when it wandered off and has stolen a bomb from the ship that was to be used to destroy a Geth base. This bomb has a 20 kiloton tactical fusion warhead, about the same as the bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima back in the 20th century. If Elanos uses that bomb on one of our colonies, well you already know what will happen. We cannot allow that to happen Shepard, you have to find Elanos and secure the bomb."

"I understand how severe this is Admiral." Shepard stated "I will go right away but how will I find Elanos?"

"Thankfully Elanos failed to deactivate the tracker on the bomb." Hackett stated "The Bomb has been tracked to the Amazon system in the Voyager Cluster. That was why I asked you since you're in the Voyager Cluster."

"It shouldn't take me long to get there." Shepard stated

"Thank you Commander." Hackett stated "But there's one more thing, after you've finished in the Voyager Cluster, the Republic military wants you to head to the Armstrong Nebula. Admiral Thrawn of the Seventh Fleet is engaging Geth there and there may be information as to where Saren is. We need you to find it."

"After I finished here in the Voyager Cluster, I'll head straight to the Armstrong Nebula." Shepard stated

"Good luck Commander." Hackett stated "Hackett out." The hologram vanished and Shepard contacted Joker and told him to head to the Amazon System.

...

Just like the Colombia and the Yangtze Systems, the Amazon System was named after a famous river from Earth, this system was named after the Amazon river, the longest river in South America and the second longest on Earth. This system was home to five planets, the furthest of them from the sun was called Tremar, a hydrogen-helium gas giant with traces of methane and nitrogen in the upper atmosphere. Next was Sybin, a small rock and ice planet with a thin atmosphere of hydrogen sulphide and ethane. The crust contained significant deposits of green serpentine, a mineral formed by volcanic activity which suggested that Sybin was once geologically active in the past. But while the Normandy was nearby, scans picked up a large mine grid and with help from Pressly, a small team led by Verbro recovered a small probe marked with the Turian Quadium outpost insignia. The next two planets, Dernecua and Sonedma were both super terrestrial worlds but were of little interest to anyone.

But the first planet in the system, Agebinium was the planet of interest as this was where the bomb signal was coming from. This small terrestrial planet once had a thicker atmosphere but every 16 years, the systems red star blasted the planet with storms which have blown the atmosphere apart. Shepard arranged her team with included Kaidan and Ashley. Bau came along as well since his sniping skills may come in handy and since there was a bomb here, Tali and Bakira came along, Tali for her hacking skills and Bakira for her explosive skills. Once the team was ready, the Mako was dropped onto the planet surface.

The landing site was a large chasm but the signal for the bomb was nearby so Pekue drove the bomb towards the signal but they soon saw that the signal was coming from an old abandoned mine.

"Wait, the signal is coming from a mine?" Tali questioned

"That defiantly is suspicious?" Bau stated

Shepard walked carefully towards the mine and looked at the others "Everyone be on your guard." He stated "This bomb has enough explosives to explode this whole mine on top of us and probably cause a rockslide. Haliat is probably going to be waiting for us in there so be on your guard."

The group then entered the mine but to their confusion, no one was waiting for them. In fact the whole mine was empty. No guards, no traps, no explosives. Something was not right here. Then they found the nuke that they were looking forward but Ashley stopped.

"I don't like this Commander." She stated "This has to be a trap of some kind. There is just no way that Haliat would make this so easy for us."

"I agree." Shepard stated "But I don't know what Haliat is doing."

Then a loud bang was heard and the mine shook knocking everyone off their feet. Bau cough as he got up "That was a detonator Commander." He stated and then he looked at the entrance which had been caved in "This was a trap, Haliat has sealed the entrance."

The group heard a few beeps and they saw an Astro droid nearby which activated a hologram and a bald human male with thick muscles appeared "Commander Shepard" he stated "We meet at last."

Shepard did not recognise the man but she already had an idea on who this was "I guess you're Elanos Haliat."

Elanos laughed "You are right in your guess. Once I was the most successful pirate in the Terminus System. I had hundreds of gangs under my control, I decided where they would strike and I had my own small empire, small colonies bowed to me, I was an Emperor of my own Empire. I had the most men out of all the other gangs, I seized the most ships, sacked the most colonies and made the most money. Your Republic made my life hard so I took the opportunity when it was given to me to send the Republic a message. I assembled the largest fleet from the Terminus Systems, thousands of skilled pirates, slavers and mercenaries, hundreds of ships and we attacked your largest colony in the Verge. The attack went off as planned since your Republic Fleet was away on tests at the time. The attack was on the verge of victory but then you came along and destroyed it. You held your position long enough which allowed reinforcements to arrive. I lost the majority of my fleet, a large amount of my men had been killed but I lost the respect of my allies. They turned against me and my own Empire crumbled. And it was all because of you!"

Shepard glared at the man "Don't act like you're a victim!" she snapped "You're kind are nothing but criminals who attack those who cannot defend themselves. Your kind has no place in the galaxy!"

Elanos laughed "You don't understand anything. I've been planning my revenge for years. If I kill the woman who ruined my career, I will regain some of my lost respect. The bomb I stole was not to be used to attack a colony, it was to lure you. I knew the Republic would send one of their best to stop me and my plan worked. Now you're trapped in the mine with a bomb that's about to go off while I escape. Oh and if you haven't noticed, these mines are laced with heavy metals so I'm afraid that you won't be able to use your radios. And thank you for the Mako; it will make a fabulous prize. So long Shepard." The hologram faded and they heard a ticking noise as the nuke activated and had a 1 minute countdown.

"Hold on Shepard." Bakira stated as she knelt in front of the bomb "I'm on it."

"I'll help" Tali added.

Tali was able to hack the bomb, she was unable to disable the countdown but she was able to open the mainframe of the bomb. This allowed Bakira to quickly defuse the bomb by using her explosives skills to cut out the detonator and cut the wires that led to the explosives.

When the bomb was disable, they let out a sigh of relief "That was too close Commander." Bau stated

"I know." Shepard stated "We need to find another way out of here."

Ashley quickly found another tunnel leading away from where the bomb was and they quickly headed up the tunnel to find a way out.

...

Thankfully, this new tunnel did lead them back to the surface and they were now on the top of the cliffs that formed the chasm. They also saw what looked like the mercenary base not far but this looked to be a temporary camp, not a proper hideout. Shepard and her team had a vantage point and they could see the camp.

"Hold on Shepard." Bau stated as he took out his sniper rifle "I'll take look." He looked through the scope on his rifle and zoomed in to see the camp "I can see Haliat as well as about 10 men. That's not a big team, he must have more men somewhere." He then saw a shuttle "That must be his shuttle, I can see them preparing to load something on board." He then gasped at what he saw next "Oh man, they've got the Mako and Pekue. I see Pekue tied up in the commander's tent."

Then Shepard's comm went off "Commander, please respond."

Shepard replied back "I copy Joker, I apologize, but we had a situation with the bomb."

"You can tell me about that latter." Joker stated "Anyway, we found a pirate frigate up here, the stealth drives are still in operation so they haven't seen us yet, do you want us to take them out?"

"Do it Joker." Shepard replied "Take that pirate ship out."

"Will do Commander." Joker replied and the call ended.

Shepard looked at the team "Alright, I have a plan, Bau will remain here to provide cover fire, Ashley and I will sneak into the camp to free Pekue. And Bakira, set some explosives on that shuttle, make sure they can't take off."

"Will do Commander." Bakira stated and they all went to do their missions. Bakira was an expert at sneaking as well as explosives and was able to sneak past the lookouts and make it to the shuttle where she planted some thermal detonators to the shuttle's engines and then she sneaked away behind a rock where Shepard and Ashley were waiting for her. Then Bakira activated the detonator and the explosives detonated and blew the shuttle apart and created a distraction to allow Shepard and Ashley to charge into the camp while Bau sniped some of the pirates from his vantage point. These pirates were not well trained and were quickly dealt with. Shepard saw Haliat groaning on the floor clutching a wound.

"You little bitch!" he snarled at Shepard "Why do you have to ruin everything?"

Shepard glared at the man "You've ruined the lives of so many people!" she snarled back "Now your crimes have come back to bite you." There was a massive explosion in the sky and Shepard looked up to see the end of a space battle.

Then Joker called over the radio "Shepard, the pirate ship is destroyed."

"Good job." Shepard replied "Prepare to pick us up Joker, we're done here."

"Will do Commander." Joker replied and ended the call.

Haliat glared at Shepard "One of these days, you will pay for this."

"Not by you." Shepard responded "Unlike you, I don't commit crimes." Haliat managed to push himself up and charge at Shepard only to be shot in the back by Ashley and Haliat crumbled to the ground.

"That's for all the people on Elysium!" she snarled.

Shepard didn't care about Haliat's death but felt that she had finished what had been started a long time ago. She had ended a story from her past and brought justice for a crime that had been committed long ago. Bau quickly ran down the hill with Tali and Bakira helped Pekue from the tent.

"Thank you Commander." Pekue stated "These pirates ambushed me as soon as you entered the mine. They were watching us since we landed. They were going to take the Mako and sell me into slavery. I'm glad that you're not dead like they told me."

"It will take a lot more than a bomb to kill me or my team." Shepard stated

"Thank you again Commander." Pekue stated "And here, one of the pirates brought these drawings from a scavenger nearby. The drawings look Turian and you've been collecting these insignias."

Shepard looked at the drawing which was of the Syglar Outpost and thanked Pekue. Then they all went back into the Normandy and were picked up by the Mako.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: Well another chapter has been finished. I did hope to have this finished before the end of June but I was unable to finish it in time. I used this chapter to bring some of the new Normandy officers to have a bigger role than just named and one Officer will play a role in the next chapter which will be the Armstrong Nebula which will be a main quest in this story. I will be able to have what some fans want which will be a proper space battle and I will try and write it as best as I can. I was going to have this chapter include the personal quest for Bakira but it turned out that Cerberus quests were not in the Hades Gamma like I originally thought as it's been a while since I played Mass Effect so I changed it. Bakira and Kaidan's personal quests will replace some of the side missions in the Hades Gamma and I will write them soon. But until then, enjoy this chapter and look forward to seeing some popular star wars characters in the next chapter. But I will be working on other stories as well.**


	18. Geth Incursions:

**Geth Incursions:**

After finishing the mission on Agebinium, Shepard and the crew returned to the Normandy and the first thing Shepard did was go down to the crew deck to speak with the Droid maintenance Officer Ci Chos. She still had the data they recovered from the Cerberus base earlier and she decided that she needed to make a copy of it.

Ci Chos was a female Rodian with yellow scales. She had grown up in the on one of the outer colonies in the Republic and had worked in a junk shop where she stripped out ship and droids for parts. Eventually she earned enough money to leave the planet and she soon joined the Republic military and thanks to her knowledge on repairing droids and ships, she became a maintenance officer for droids to keep them up and running.

"Ah, Commander Shepard." Chos greeted as Shepard entered "Is there's something I can help with?"

"Yes, Chos, there is." Shepard replied and held out the data disk they recovered from the Cerberus base, "I need this data to be copied. The files are encrypted but I don't want to take any chances with this data, it's important to RSB so I would like a copy to be made."

Chos nodded and took the data disk from Shepard "I'll have my droids make a copy of the data. It will take some time though."

"Take as much time as you need." Shepard stated "I'd rather not take risks and risk losing all of the data." Shepard then left the room while Chos prepared to make copies of the data.

...

Shepard made her way up to the bridge of the Normandy where Joker and Luke were chatting. "I can't believe we'll be working alongside Grand Admiral Thrawn." Luke stated "He's a legend within the Republic."

Joker smiled "He never lets anything go to waste. He never rushes in without thinking and he explores every possible action available."

Luke then noticed Shepard had entered "Ah, Commander, Shepard." He greeted "We'll soon be arriving at the coordinates that we were sent for the Seventh Fleet. Grand Admiral Thrawn has already been informed of our arrival."

"That's good." Shepard replied "We don't want any misunderstandings. How's the Normandy performing."

Joker smiled "She's the best ship the Republic has." He stated "As long as you have a pilot who knows how to fly her. The balance on this ship isn't what you expect. It takes a while to get use to this ship's oversized drive core, her power can sneak up on you if we're not careful."

"I thought I should get to know my crew better." Shepard said

Joker scoffed "I can see where this is going. You did a background check on me; well I'll tell you what I told Anderson. I'm not good, I'm not even great, I'm the best damn helmsman in the Republic. Top of my class in flight school, I earned that, I earned every single reward I got. Those weren't given to me as charity because of my disease."

"Joker!" Luke hissed "Remember she's our commanding Officer."

"Right, I'm sorry." Joker stated "It's just I had to work hard to get where I am and a lot of people something think it was because officials took pity on me."

"What is this disease?" Shepard questioned

"I suffer from Vrolik's syndrome better known as brittle bone disease." Joker stated "The bones in my legs never developed properly, they're basically hollow so if they come under too much force they'll shatter. Even with crutches and a leg embrace it's hard to get around, a simple fall could destroy my legs completely so it was hard for me as a kid. I've learned to manage my condition but it meant that it was harder for me to get a position in the military but I eventually got my position. Put the Normandy in my hands and I'll make her dance but don't ask me to dance as I'll destroy my legs. I never smiled as a child because of my condition so one of the teachers called me Joker as a kid and the name just stuck."

"I might need to know more about this Vrolik Syndrome if I'm putting the Normandy in your hands." Shepard stated

Joker sighed "Vrolik Syndrome is a very rare condition, no one knows what causes it. It's treatable but there is no cure, you're born with the condition, I was born with over a dozen fractures, hips thighs, ankles, basically my bones were already breaking in the womb. Before we met the Chiss, I wouldn't have survived past my first year but medicine had come a long way since then so I was able to live. I can fly this ship fine as I don't need to move around but I do have to be very careful when I need to get up and take a bathroom break which is why I have the medical droid help me so I don't trip."

"I can understand why you feel people take pity on you." Luke stated "I had a problem of my own because of my father."

"Your father was Anakin Skywalker wasn't he?" Joker questioned

"He was." Luke replied "One of the best generals in the Republic and the best starfighter pilot around but some said he was reckless at times. I used to be a starfighter pilot as well but after my father vanished, my mother forced me to move to a safer position. She worries for me but I miss the days of flying a starfighter." He then looked at Shepard "In fact, I want to come with you when we meet Thrawn, some of my old friends from the academy work with him, I hoped to see them."

"I'm sure no one will mind." Shepard stated "But what did happen to your father?"

"No one knows." Luke replied "He was in charge of the team sent to Akuze after the colony vanished. It's known that the team was attacked by Thresher Maws but my father's body was never recovered and he was listed as missing in action rather than killed in action. But thanks to rumours that my father abandoned his men, I was forced to take a back seat from combat missions which was why I was forced out of the starship program even though many people who knew my father defended him. My mother fought hard against the accusations and was able to get them cleared but the damage was done."

Shepard felt sorry for Skywalker, she had lost her father after he died after being exposed to the vaccum of space but to lose your father and have his name disgraced is another thing. If anyone disrespected her father then she would fight back but sometimes politics were complicated.

"Commander, we should be exiting lightspeed soon." Joker added

"Alright Joker, I'll get a team ready to meet with Grand Admiral Thrawn." Shepard stated and she left the bridge.

...

The Normandy soon exited lightspeed at the coordinates where the Republic Seventh Fleet was currently stationed. They were currently in the Gagarin System of the Armstrong Nebula. The Armstrong Nebula was a cluster of five systems all of which were named after landmarks in human space travel. The cluster itself was named after Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon who also had a city named after him on Earth's moon. The cluster had no interest for the Republic but the military maintained a presence here as pirates were known to come here to prepare raids and now the Geth had set up bases. The Gagarin System was named after Yuri Gagarin, the first ever man in space which was home to five planets.

The first planet, Junthor was a large terrestrial planet with a thick atmosphere of carbon dioxide and chlorine and a surface mostly composed of aluminium and nickel. This planet was once home to an ancient civilization as there were signs of an old colony in the equator and the Asari had been able to translate writings as they had found this system before but never claimed it and they had left some of their ships behind as a derelict freighter was left behind and one of Matriarch Dilinaga's writings was on board.

The second planet Pressha was a small hydrogen-helium gas giant where a Turian veteran of the Krogan rebellions ship had been found after going into unexplored territory. The fourth planet Sogelrus was a small terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere of nitrogen and argon and a frigate surface mostly made up of water ice which can be seen in the bottoms of recently formed craters and the planet had a dark colour due to carbon being pushed from the dense core by cryovolcanic processes. The fifth planet was a small rock and ice planet called Antrumgon which had a trace atmosphere of methane and ethane and a frozen surface of carbon and calcium. The planet was also home to pirate crews as below the surface, methanol formed and pirates were know to drill for this alcohol.

The Republic Seventh Fleet was currently stationed above the second planet in the system known as Rayingri which was a hellish world and no one wanted to risk mining it despite the resources available. The planet was also not expected to last much longer as a rogue planetoid known as Vahtz had entered a decaying orbit around Rayingri which created earthquates and storms on the planets. It was expected that the planets would rip each other apart and soon were prepared to witness such a spectacle.

The Republic Seventh Fleet was one of the strongest fleets in the Republic which was known for combat. The Seventh fleet also included a large number of ships including fifteen Resurgence class Star destroyers and Ten Venator Class Star Destroyers as well as dozens of cruisers and frigates, the flagship of the Seventh Fleet was the Chimera, the ship commanded by Grand Admiral Thrawn, Commander of the Seventh Fleet.

The Normandy exited lightspeed close to the Republic fleet and Communication Officer switched the comns to the bridge "This is RSV Normandy requesting to dock with RSV Chimera." Joker said

The reply was "RSV Normandy, transmit clearance code."

"Copy Chimera, transmission commencing." Luke added and he transmitted the clearance code to the Chimera.

"RSV Normandy, request accepted, prepare to dock with Chimera and prepare for a party to meet with you."

The Normandy flew to the underside of the Chimera where the docking port was which allowed the Normandy to dock with the Chimera.

...

Shepard selected her team to go to on board the Chimera to meet with Grand Admiral Thrawn. She had selected Bau since he was a Spectre as well as Ashley and Kaidan since they served the Republic and because Tali was a Geth expert she would come as well along with Liara. Luke had also arrived in hopes to see some of his old friends.

Shepard and her team entered the Normandy's airlock and they waited for the decontamination process to finish and they were soon out of the Normandy and onto the Chimera where two men were waiting for them. One was dressed in a grey officer's uniform with a rank plaque that showed him to be an Admiral. He had white hair and a bushy white moustache. The other man had short brown hair and wore the uniform of a pilot with gold markings on.

"Commander Shepard." The Admiral greeted "Colonel Yularen informed us that you would be arriving. I am Admiral Gilad Pellaeon, second in Command of the Seventh Fleet. This is Commander Jon Vander, leader of Gold Squadron." The two of them shook hands with Shepard.

Shepard looked at Vander "I remember you, you led the Dutch Raid during the Verge War."

"A very important moment for us." Vander stated "We showed the Batarians that were weren't afraid to strike back against them.

"We should head for the war room." Pellaeon stated "Grand Admiral Thrawn wants to brief you on what has been going on here. He has the other commanders there as well, your companions are welcomed as well although we will have to strip them of weapons while they're on board the Chimera, regulations state that weapons are not prettied unless we are being boarded and that goes for the Spectre as well."

"Your rules in the Republic." Bau stated "At least I'm a Spectre who understands that, not all Spectres do."

"I'm glad we were unable to avoid a diplomatic situation here." Pellaeon stated. He then led them into a large room which had a hologram of the Armstrong Nebula and there were three more people in the room. Two of them wore similar uniforms to Vander only one had red markings while the other had black marking. "Commander Shepard, this is Commander Garven Dreis, Commander of Red Squadron." He introduced the man with the red markings "and this is Commander Poe Dameron, Commander of Black Squadron."

But it was the third man in the room who gathered everyone's attention. This man was not a human but it did look human except that he had blue skin, bluish black hair and red eyes which showed that he was a Chiss. He wore a white Officer's uniform with a Grand Admiral's Plaque on his chest. This was Grand Admiral Thrawn, one of the best commanders in the Republic navy and a well respected man throughout the Republic for his actions during the Verge Wars and respected for not wasting any resources and caring for the people who serve him. He and Pellaeon go back years.

"Thank you for the introduction Pellaeon." Thrawn said in a calm voice and then he looked at Shepard "So you must be Commander Shepard, I've heard quite a lot about you."

"And I've heard much about you as well Grand Admiral Thrawn." Shepard replied "My parents spoke highly of you."

"Yes, William Shepard, a great man and a great commander." Thrawn stated "I was said to hear of his death. He was a good man."

"He was." Shepard stated "Now Colonel Yularen said that the Geth were massing here for a staging ground."

"The Geth have been here in large numbers." Thrawn stated "My forces have been battling the Geth in the systems of the Armstrong Cluster but I have a feeling that these were just scouts and not the main Geth Fleet. The forces here have been smaller and they seem more like scouts than the main fleet. The main Geth fleet must be around here, I just need to find out where." He pressed a button on the hologram which lit up four systems in the Armstrong Nebula "These systems have been where we've encountered the Geth and in each system, the Geth have established a small base. I have a feeling that the information I seek to find the main Geth fleet will be in these bases. But I don't have the resources to send men down there."

"But I have." Shepard stated "I can lead a small team down onto each planet and Tali can download the data."

Pellaeon looked at Thrawn who nodded "We have located the bases on the planets. The bases aren't that big so there shouldn't be large Geth presence in the bases but I do worry about the larger Geth units in those bases."

"I've got a skilled team who can take out the Geth." Shepard stated

Thrawn nodded "Alright then, take your team and recover the data from the bases. I feel like taken separately the information won't be that useful but together, they may reveal the location of the Geth base. The first base is right here above Rayingri."

"I'll have the Normandy prepare the Mako for launch." Shepard stated "We'll retrieve the data here and then head to the other systems and recover the data from those bases."

"You do that Commander." Thrawn stated "And good luck."

Luke looked at Thrawn "Grand Admiral Thrawn." He greeted "My name is Luke Skywalker, I believe you knew my father."

"I did." Thrawn replied "Anakin Skywalker, a great general and a man worth following."

"Some of my old friends serve you here." Luke added "I hoped to meet them while I was here."

Red Leader, Garven Dreis looked at Luke "I see." He stated "Wedge and Biggs talked about you a lot, they'll be glad to see you. I don't mind you seeing them."

"Thank you Commander." Luke stated and looked back at Shepard "I'll see you back on the Normandy when you get back."

"Alright Luke." Shepard responded "I'll need you back on the Normandy when we've finished on Rayingri." She then left the room with the rest of her team.

...

The Chimera positioned itself close to Rayingri and allowed the Mako to launch from the Normandy with Shepard's crew on board. Pekue had a hard time seeing where she was going as the surface was very dark because of the planetoid in orbit. Shortly after landing, the Mako drove west and found the remains of s scavenger base as well as several bodies, these scavengers must have been here when the Geth arrived and there were signs of an ambush. The scavengers were hit suddenly and they stood no chance of survival but from the look of the camp, there were more scavengers than the number of bodies they found so either some had been away at the time of the attack or the Geth had captured them. Tali thought it was unlikely they were captured as the Geth don't usually take prisoners.

The Mako drove further south and soon found an old crashed probe which held a League of One Medallion which Shepard added to her collection and soon they arrived at the base. It was a good thing that the Seventh Fleet had already bombarded this base, the Geth were here in force but they were no match for a bombardment from the Star Destroyers which had destroyed the large cannons outside as well as a large number of Geth but the base itself had survived thanks to the base being built mostly underground in a natural cavern on the planet's surface.

The base was likely an old pirate den that was being used by the scavengers when the Geth arrived. Rayingri was not the best place for a base because of the volcanic activity but it made it the perfect place to hide out for a while. As soon as Shepard's team entered the base, they saw that most of the supplies from the base had been dumped. Most of them were simple food supplies which were useless to the Geth. But as they went further into the base, they came across something unusual, they found the husk like creatures that Shepard had seen on Eden Prime and there were a swarm of them.

Once they had taken out the husks, Bau looked at Shepard "Weren't these creatures the same type that you found on Eden Prime?" he asked

"They were." Shepard responded "But where did these ones come from."

"I guess these husks are the scavengers from this base." Kaidan stated "But I don't see how they were created. On Eden Prime the colonists were impaled on spikes and then transformed."

"The Geth may have transformed them here in the base." Tali suggested

"It doesn't matter how these husks were created." Ashley stated "Right now we need to find information from this base at the main terminal."

Shepard agreed and they carried on through the base and soon they found actual Geth units in the base. A large number of Geth troopers open fired forcing Shepard and her team to take cover. Then a Geth Juggernaut attacked as well as a Geth Prime which were both very hard to take out but Shepard and Ashley laid down some covering fire and allowed Bau to get into a position with his sniper and shoot the Geth Prime in the head. Liara then used her biotics to crush the Juggernaut's armour and allow Shepard to blow it apart. Once all of the Geth were defeated, Shepard and her team looked around to try and find some information. Eventually they found a terminal and Tali used her Geth knowledge to hack the terminal and find the information they wanted.

"Commander, according to this Terminal, it seems the Geth have been moving a large amount of resources from other territories they control here to construct some kind of Geth station."

"Does the terminal say where it's being constructed?" Shepard asked

"Unfortunatly not." Tali replied "It seems they moved the resources from different areas to prevent them from being discovered. They ship them to different places for construction in parts before being fully assembled."

"Even so, that information will be useful to Thrawn." Shepard stated "Download it and then we should head back to the Normandy."

"Understood Shepard." Tali replied as she began downloading the data.

...

Back with the Seventh Fleet, Luke Skywalker had been taken to the Hanger Bay on board the Star Destroyer Minotaur which was the Star Destroyer that held Red Squadron. It was here that Luke would be able to see his old friends and he was taken to the Hanger Bay where the fighters for Red Squadron were based. Red Squadron was mainly a squadron for fighters so the hanger was filled with X-Wing and A-Wing fighters which had red markings to show their squadron. As Luke was looking around, he heard someone call him.

"Luke, is that you?"

Luke turned around and saw a man with black hair and a thin moustache walking towards him "Biggs" he laughed and the two grabbed each other arms.

"How are you doing?" the man known as Biggs laughed "What are you doing here?"

"My ship has been stationed here and I wanted to see how you were doing." Luke stated "How are the others."

"They're fine." He stated "In fact they'll be glad to see you." He looked over his shoulder "Hey Wedge, Hobbie, Rake, guess who's here?"

Three more pilots came up and they all they all gasped as well "Well I'll never have guess." The one known as Wedge gasped.

"Hey Skyguy." Hobbie laughed

"It's great to see you again." Rake added.

"It's great to see you too." Luke stated "I still wish I could be fighting with you guys."

Wedge sighed "You were the best of all of us and then they transfer you when your father vanishes."

"That's so messed up." Rake added "You should be flying with us, not co-piloting a warship."

"Hey I have to make the best of it." Luke stated "And I am on an important mission for the Republic. I have stories to tell you all."

"Well I'm afraid those are going to have to wait." Red Leader, Garven said as he came over "I just got a call, Commander Shepard is heading back to the Normandy so you're needed there. And don't worry, I'm sure one of these days you'll be flying a starship again."

"Thanks sir." Luke responded and he looked at his friends "It was great seeing you all again."

"It was great seeing you as well Luke." Biggs said "We'll hear all your stories when we get back alright."

"I'll tell you all at some point." Luke said and then he left his friends to head back to the Normandy

...

After Shepard made her way back to the Normandy, she learnt that Luke had also returned and now she walked over to the bridge where Luke was waiting for her along with Joker."

"Where are we off to next Commander." Joker asked

"We have to head to the next system and destroy the Geth there." Shepard replied

"Aye Commander." Luke stated "The next system will be the Tereshkova System. I'm plotting a course there now." The Normandy disconnected itself from the Chimera and got into a position where it could jump to lightspeed.

...

The Tereshkova system was named after Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to fly in space. This system was unique as it was a binary star system which meant it had two stars that orbited each other but their energy was very low. This system also had an Asteroid belt and six planets which included Hunsalra, a hydrogen-helium gas giant that had large amounts of nitrogen in the upper atmosphere. This planet was used as a dumping ground for drive charges and so there was a debris field in orbit. Overall the other planets in the system, Patamalrus, Mawinor, Solmarlon and Thegeuse weren't of any interest although there was a carbonaceous Asteroid in the belt where some debris were recovered and a League of One Medallion was recovered.

The first planet in the system, Antibaar was a cold terrestrial world with an atmosphere of methane and argon and a frozen surface composed of iron with deposits of magnesium. This planet was one that could be terreformed by the Republic but the surface temperature was very cold but could be raised by Terraforming but there was still the problem with strong winds and poor visibility.

The Mako landed during a strong snowstorm and Pekue quickly started driving to the base. Along the way, they came across some Prothean ruins and when Shepard checked them out, they found a small Prothean box which contained a Prothean Data disk. They then heard a roar nearby and saw a Thresher Maw emerged from the ground so Shepard quickly got back into the Tank and got into the Mako's cannon. After a few shots in the mouth, the Thresher Maw collapsed dead and nearby, they found a Geth patrol which had been torn apart by the Thresher Maw.

The Mako soon arrived at the base but it seemed that this outpost was just a small base above ground with no buildings. An orbital strike had pretty much wiped out all of the geth and a Dropship had crashed and it seemed this Dropship had been destroyed by a Y-Wing Bomber as the top of the ship had been destroyed by proton bombs. There were a few Geth that had survived the bombardment but they were quickly taken care of and then Shepard and Tali went to a nearby terminal to try and get information.

"You find anything Tali?" Shepard asked

Tali nodded "This terminal seems recently sent out a request for aid but it seems that aid arrived during the bombardment." She looked at the fallen Dropship "I've managed to find the direction of the transmission, that could provide a clue for the location of the main Geth base."

"Good." Shepard replied "That can help provide the exact location with the rest of the information. We should get back to the Normandy and then head to the next base." Tali nodded and they soon got back into the Mako and radioed to be picked up.

...

The next Geth base was located in what was known as the Hong System, named after China's first successful satellite, Fang Hong I or Red East I. This system had five planets, Pomal, Casbin, Matar, Theshaca and Treagir.

Pomal was a terrestrial world with a very dense atmosphere of carbon dioxide and sodium. The planet had a scorching hot surface mainly composed of sodium oxides and deposits of nickel. There is evidence that Pomal once had broad shallow seas and probes have been sent to find fossils which would be valuable for scientists. Matar was a terrestrial planet with a thick atmosphere made of nitrogen and krypton and a frigid surface composed of sodium oxide with deposits of copper. Explorers were warned to be careful because of noxious surface gasses. Matar lacked a magnetic field so life was impossible on the planet and was useless for discharging drive cores and the lack of a magnetic field gave Matar it's mint green colour thanks to the krypton being ionised. While scanning the planet, an old Asari fighter was recovered with a body. Dr Chakwas examined the body but couldn't identify it but she did recover some of Matriarch Dilinaga's writings.

Theshaca was standard hydrogen-helium gas giant that was famous for the Theshaca raids as the Republic set up sensing devices on one of the moons which allowed the Republic to track eight pirate anchorages in six months which really damaged pirate activity in the system and Treagir was a tiny ice dwarf with a trace atmosphere of xenon and krypton and had a surface made of frozen water and ammonia.

Casbin was the second planet in the Hong system and the planet where the Geth base was located. Casbin was actually a planet that might be suitable for habitation in the future because it had conditions similar to earth, the atmosphere was made up of nitrogen and carbon dioxide and plant life had begun to develop on the planet. The Republic senate had declared this planet to be off limits as landing might disrupt the local ecosystem and as a result, the Seventh Fleet had been forbidden to bombard this world which Thrawn had obeyed so the Geth were still here in force so Shepard had to be careful.

To minimize the damage, Shepard only decided to take Tali, Bau, Liara and Ashley on this mission. The Mako soon landed in a large canyon which was surrounded by large hills. Pekue quickly picked up a signal and they drove to it to find an old beacon. It was unknown why it was here but they did find the Salarian ID tag of Captain Thein, a Salarian responsible for hunting the League of One.

After finding the beacon, Pekue drove forward to a signal where they found a Geth setup but this was not the main base on Casbin, this was a simple lookout camp guarded by three turrets. The Mako's cannon quickly took the cannons out and The Mako moved into the camp in order to be used as cover. The remaining Geth were quickly taken out but then there were several loud bangs from a sniper rifle.

"Sniper, get down!" Ashley yelled and pulled Shepard to the ground thinking that a Geth Sniper was in the hills but then the sniper snots hit the remaining Geth instead destroying their heads. When the shots fell silent, Shepard looked at the bodies.

"That Sniper came from the hills?" she questioned "Who else is here?"

"I don't know." Bau stated "But we might find some answers at the main camp."

"We should head there now then." Liara stated and they went back into the Mako and drove to the main camp located east of the lookout camp. This camp also had cannons but this camp also had a Geth Colossus and some Geth Armatures. The Mako took out the cannons and the Armatures and was eventually able to take out the Colossus.

When the Geth were defeated, Shepard and her team got out of the Mako and went for the terminal but they heard a noise and saw a Geth Dropship dropping some Geth units but then the ship got hit by a rocket blast but not from the Mako, the shot came from the other side towards the hills and the remaining Geth were shot from the same side by a sniper. This time Shepard retrieved a set of electrobinoculars from the Mako. Electrobinoculars were new versions of binoculars which would make it easier to see things from a distance and created a clear image. The army regularly used them to see enemy troops approaching. But what Shepard saw shocked them, it was actually a small unit of Geth up of the hills which had fired the sniper shots and the rocket. But instead of coming down, the Geth simply got onto a small transport and left.

"Shepard, what did you see?" Bau asked

"That was odd." Shepard said confused "It was Geth that shot down that Dropship."

"Geth?" Liara questioned "Why would Geth aid us in destroying other Geth."

"I have no idea." Tali stated "I've never seen this. Maybe the terminal will give us information." She went over to the terminal and was able to hack it "There's not much information that can help us located the Geth but it seems that there is infighting amongst the Geth."

"Infighting?" Bau questioned

"Aye, it seems some Geth don't worship the Old Machines as these Geth call them." Tali stated "I guess that refers to the Reapers. It seems the Geth split into two groups so it seems we're not fighting all of the Geth at all."

"Does that change anything?" Shepard questioned

"It means the Geth we're fighting are not as strong as we thought but they're still pretty powerful." Tali replied "The last entry said that scouts from the rival Geth faction were here, I guess those Geth we saw were part of that faction."

"Why didn't they fire on us though?" Ashley questioned

"I have no idea!" Tali exclaimed "I never even knew about this. Two factions of Geth fighting each other, we barely know anything on the Geth's intentions."

"Regardless, we still have one base left." Shepard stated "We're going back to the Normandy now." Shepard and her team were soon picked up by the Normandy and the Normandy plotted a course for the location of the final base, Vamshi.

...

Just like Tereshkova, Vamshi was a binery star system with two stars, one of which was a red Giant and Vamshi was one of the smallest system with only 3 planets, Maji, Pregel and Almos. Pregel was an enormous terrestrial world with an atmosphere made of chlorine and ethane and a surface composed of sulphur with deposits of aluminium, no landing had been attempted on this planet. Scans picked up several marker buoys and Engineer Adams was able to secure some images which showed the buoys had the markings of the Turian Baetika insignia. Almos was a simple hydrogen-helium gas giant with traces of sodium darkening the atmosphere.

But it was the planet Maji where the Geth had a base, Maji orbited close to the binary stars and had a thin atmosphere of methane and carbon monoxide and the star created lethal levels of radiation. This planet was infamous as being used for sports by cruel Terminus gangs were they dumped slaves, hostages and vicious animals where they would fight each other. The lethal amount of radiation would often kill the dumped people so Shepard would have to take space suits on this mission.

Shepard took the Mako down onto the surface of Maji and was joined by Bau, Liara, Tali and Ashley. Shepard wanted to take as few down as possible because of the radiation. As soon as the Mako landed, Pekue saw some debris in the distance and quickly drove towards them. The debris were old and have once been part of a warship. There was some graffiti on the debris which appeared to have been marked with the Turian Edessan Colony insignia. Not far from the debris, they found a large skeleton and drove towards it. Shepard and her team got out to have a look, this creature was not a Thresher Maw as it had wings.

"What creature is this?" Bau questioned "I've never seen anything like it?"

"Could it be from an old species?" Liara questioned "But whatever it is, how did it get here?"

Shepard knew what it was "I know what this creature is." She stated "It's a Purrgil, a vacuum living species that travel through space in pacts. This is one that likely came here to die. I'll tell you more about them latter. We need to get out of this radiation, our suits won't last forever."

They quickly got back into the Mako and Pekue drove the Mako further north to where the Geth outpost was located. This outpost was located at the top of a large mountain, there was a path to drive up but there were turrets along the way so Shepard got into the turret and took out the turrets one by one as they drove up the hill. Eventually they made it to the outpost and this one was also above ground but it was guarded by a Geth Colossus so the Mako was needed. Shepard got into the Turret and fired at the Colossus while Pekue drove to avoid the blasts which did make hitting the Colossus harder. It took a while but the Colossus was eventually defeated along with the other Geth units.

With the Geth defeated, Tali and Shepard went to look at the terminal "It seems that a Geth fleet is set to arrive in the Armstrong Nebula to assist the main Geth fleet here. I have their projected path from where they jumped but I cannot see where they arrived."

"Thrawn can make use of this." Shepard responded "Combined with the information we received at the other bases, he can predict the location of the Geth fleet. Now it's time to head back to the Normandy and then back to the Seventh fleet."

...

As soon as the Mako was back on the Normandy, Shepard went to the bride "Joker, Luke, it's time we head back to the Seventh Fleet, we have the information Thrawn needs."

"Aye Commander." Joker stated and soon the Normandy was heading back towards the Gagarin System and the Seventh Fleet.

**Chapter End:**

**Notes: Well another chapter finished. I had intended to do this longer and include a space battle but I decided to do that in a separate chapter but you will get to see a proper space battle in the next chapter. Also I have gone back to previous chapters to make some corrections, I have changed that thedarkwolf95 pointed out about Shepard joining the army, I have fixed this mistake and I have also changed the Fleet above Eden Prime to be a task force instead of a full fleet and show the Republic's strength. I will also address thedarkwolf95's comment about the star destroyers and the destiny ascension. According to the Mass Effect Wikia, the Destiny Ascension is four times bigger than the largest human warship with a crew of 10,000. That is much bigger than the crew of a star destroyer and I don't want the Republic to be too overpowered. I have also recently bought Star Wars KOTOR 2 and I'm thinking of bringing in some influence with the game into later stories in the series. I don't want to say too much as I may give away the surprise I have. The next chapter will probably be shorter but I plan to work on a chapter of Rise of the Divines and Dragon X first so the next chapter might not be ready until the end of August, we'll just see how things go.**


End file.
